The Trials of David
by TheInnerPeace
Summary: There's a little darkness in us all. For some, it consumes them, dragging them down. However, in the darkness there's always light. This is the case for David Smith, a man with a forgotten past and a bright future, as he strives to do good for society. However, his past plagues his mind and threatens to tear this new chapter in his life apart, inside his mind and in his life.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: A New Dawn**

It was a cool Thursday evening in the down town of Vale as pedestrians could be seen moving to and fro heading to their destinations in a small courtyard area, despite it turning dark as the light of the sun fled from the moon. Street lamps came to life, but no one took much notice. Especially the shady looking man leaning against a relatively small apartment complex. The man in question was wearing a relatively simple outfit consisting of a pure black business suit and a red tie while covering his eyes with a pair of glasses with an extremely deep red tint blocking out his eyes completely.

'God it's cold out tonight,' He thought to himself as a cold breeze flowed over his shoulder, chilling him to almost shivering. This was the third time in the past twenty minutes he had been chilled while he leaned against the wall waiting. 'If this kid doesn't show so help me I will…' But that's as far as his thoughts got before he spied through the crowd a young man who caught his attention. This seemed to be another innocent bystander simply wearing a grey jacket that appeared to not fit him properly, a pair of black athletic pants with white stripes running down the outside of each leg, and white running shoes. He appeared to be extremely tired, his blonde hair strewn around his head in no particular fashion, his dark blue eyes gazing out, as if staring into the abyss. His skin had very little colour to it making it ghostly in the light of the street lamps and moon light. He was only eighteen years old but looked more like a thirty year old as sweat slithered down his face and across the scar that cut down the right side of his face starting at the base of his eye and running down his cheek. 'I assume he's gone exercising, good' thought the man to himself as he stood up straight, 'that makes my job that much easier.'

As he began to stroll over the teen took no notice to him, and why should he, as the shifty man didn't stand out much in a group of thirty people.

He slowly, as to not draw attention to himself, slid a pocket knife from his suit's left sleeve and lunged forward aiming for his targets throat. But as the young man evaded his attack the assassin thought to himself, 'Why in Remnant did I accept this job. Oh right, because it seemed easy.'

* * *

As David Smith stood there biding his time he noticed the dark suited man get up and walk to him. That's what caught his attention. He had noticed the shady looking man, recognized the outfit and had stood there waiting for his opportunity. Luckily the nameless man (for he never knew what to call them) had simply walked towards him. As the man rotated his wrist David had noticed a slight shimmer out of the very far corner of his eye. 'A blade, should have known he wouldn't fight fair,' he casually thought to himself.

As the man lunged forward, thrusting the knife at his throat, the trap was sprung. He leaned back swiftly, dodging the blade. He then proceeded to grab the man's hand, twisting at his wrist, snapping the joint and plucked the knife from the air. From there he plunged the blade to the hilt in the man's leg, causing the man to scream in utter agony and bending over while gripping his broken hand. Taking advantage of this David shot his foot into the bridge of his assailant's nose causing him to snap upright. David quickly shoved the man against the brick wall he had been leaning against, the air rushing from his lungs. David had done this so quickly that after this lightning fast series of attacks that the bystanders now realized what was happening, fleeing at once. He grabbed the man's throat, pinning him there with a single hand.

"That wasn't the smartest decision you've made now is it," David asked the assailant very casually, as if they were mere acquaintances talking about the daily news reports. Now in a more serious tone David started interrogating his prisoner.

"Why are you trying to kill me," his voice threatening despite the fact that his voice sounded so nonchalant just seconds before.

"It's just a simple job really. It was go in, kill you and get out before the heat came down," the man managed to sputter after several seconds of trying to catch his breath, a task made significantly harder considering his throat was constrained by a near vice grip. "You know this work better than I do."

At hearing these words David gripped the blade with his free hand, twisting it. The assailant now turned captive uttered a shrill howl as his muscles were torn by an agonizingly slow turning blade.

"Now answer this next question and I'll let you go. Understand?"

The man could barely nod his head due to the excruciating pain.

"Who wants me dead?"

"If I tell you they'll kill me!" shouted the man forgetting his predicament.

David ripped the knife from the man's leg. He proceeded to slam the crimsoned blade through the brick moulding a centimetre from the man's head, shattering the brick into pieces. "And if you don't tell me I'll make you wish you were dead!" shouted David at the man who was less than a few inches away.

At the threat the man's defences broke down, "Okay enough, it was Torchwick! Torchwick sent me, I told you everything so don't hurt me!"

As if on cue a team of six similarly dressed foes appeared from out of nowhere. As they turned to face and encircle the man holding their comrade David took action, spinning around whilst grabbing the man into a choke-hold with his left hand, and drawing his custom jet black revolver, which he nicknamed Rock, and pointed it at the new enemies. At this point he didn't think it could get any worse as he scanned the crowd, quickly realizing that one of them was clearly taller and more muscular than the rest, carrying a crimson red cleaver instead of the similarly coloured swords the rest of the criminals seemed to only carry.

David readied his revolver, taking careful aim and firing directly at the proverbial giant's forehead. The projectile collided causing the man mountain to collapse. There was however no actual hole in the man's head due to the fact that the revolver was firing off single lead pellets, carefully designed to disperse on impact while merely wounding or knocking someone out. His own careful design, of course. But as the behemoth fell over the original hostile broke free of his grip and proceeded to punch David in his chest and then elbowing his forehead causing him to stagger.

'Fine you want to play, then lets play,' David thought as he removed his second revolver from its holster, nicknamed Sling, and was an exact replica, down to the very fine mechanisms required for its many uses. He quickly fired three into the original assailant's chest, causing the man to stumble and fall on his back and curling up into a ball due to the sheer amount of pain he had endured thus far.

Afterwards he sprayed the other 8 bullets at the other 5 enemies, knocking two out and injuring the rest. He then quickly sprinted at the 3 standing enemies, flicking his wrists and changing the two revolvers to their alternate forms. The 6 chambers quickly stacked on each other, ejecting the empty casings as they did so, ending with the barrel on top creating two miniature staffs. He made quick work of the three of them, striking them with lightning fast strikes to their heads, incapacitating them in the process.

By this point it was nearing midnight but at this exact point Vale's police force decided to get off their behinds and do their actual jobs. This was a problem considering there were twenty cops in total. This may have been a sufficient amount for the original amount if it weren't just David standing there as the cops surrounded him.

'I don't have time for this kind of crap right now,' he scolded himself, not being quicker to escape. At this point the cops had all pointed their firearms directly at him. It was also at this point that David bolted for an alley he saw to his left and made for his escape before the cops could even react to him fleeing.

It was all a blur of motion as he sprinted down the alleyways, sliding to a stop at each corner and was in the clear. At least, that's what it seemed like until he ran right into a brick wall. 'There's no way I could climb that,' he realized, blaming the roadblock for existing solely because of his bad luck. Before he slammed against it he noticed a metal pipe running up the building to his left, realized there was no other option, except for being captured by the police, and clambered up the pipe. It would have been difficult for others, impossible for most, but he expertly shimmied up the pipe and leaped over the wall just as the cops rounded the corner.

* * *

'What is a guy like me supposed to do now' he questioned himself as he joined the other pedestrians, but was just wandering aimlessly. 'I'm now a fugitive, but at least the cops didn't catch my face, or at least I hope. And there's the obvious fact that Roman wants me dead. But he can't blame that on me. But, I do realize that I did drag myself to that. What is there left for me? I'm an outcast of society, with a past that is constantly being dug up by someone,' he rambled to himself absent minded of what he was doing, but not caring about it.

'I need to start over, a clean slate. But that's impossible. I mean, where can I go after all I've done?' He stopped and decided to sit on a bench. He just sat there staring at his shoes, wondering what he could do other than just run. 'But that's what I'm best at,' he told himself. He then overheard two other people, same age as himself, two boys talking to one another.

"Are you excited that we can actually go to Beacon at the start of the next year?" One asked the other. His partner merely shrugged.

'Beacon? I remember that name, it's that school used to train people to fight against the Grimm if I can remember.' He remembered his parents telling him about it, how it's where the people who protected us from monsters were trained. But the memory had long since vanished, like much of his young life had. 'That's it, I could go there and start over, do the right thing for society and protect others. I graduated from Signal, and was recommended for Beacon. But can I still go, or the more important question, will I go?'

He stood up walked towards the duo he had previously been eavesdropping on and interrupted their conversation, "Where can I go to apply to Beacon?"

"Go to the building at the end of the street, you can apply there. But you will have had to graduate from another combat school first," They explained to him.

"Don't worry I already have, thanks for telling me though," he said absent-mindedly as he hurried to apply.

"No problem happy to help."

This was the start of a new dawn, David felt it in his bones and he had a future to look forward to instead of regretting his past. This was the start of something great.

* * *

**Just to let you, the reader, know that I will only be using source material for the characters in the show from volume one. However, I may include some of the information Rooster Teeth provides in Volume 2. Also, I will NOT be doing any shipping of any characters. Mainly becaue it is just my personal opiinion on the subject and it is my story, so if you want shipping, write your own story.  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Peculiar People**

It was simple enough finding the building, however it was a little bit more difficult mustering up the courage to enter the application building. 'What if I can't go to Beacon? What if they secretly know the cops are looking for me and call for help,' he thought to himself as he played out the scenario in his head, enjoying it less and less every time he thought about the possibilities. After about a minute of just standing there like a statue, he pushed open the door and walked in. He quickly examined the room

There wasn't much to the application centre, since there wasn't many people in the room. The room was a very plain white colour, with a row of chairs on the left wall and directly across from the door a lady sat at a desk, a few strands of her auburn hair dangling in front of her eyes which hid behind a pair of rimless glasses, staring blankly into a monitor. 'Here goes nothing.'

"Excuse me," he called to the application woman, "I would like to apply to Beacon."

"So, you want to train to be a hunter," she asked sarcastically, almost sounding sardonic.

"That's to be implied I would think."

"Look kid, do you want to go to Beacon or not, because if you do I just need your transcripts and then we don't need to talk to each other any more," she stated, sounding agitated.

"Right, I got them right here," he said, after rummaging through his jacket and finding his transcripts.

The desk lady quickly snatched up the documents, carefully examining them while cross referencing them to the ones on the servers. The process took less than two minutes to do, which was quite speedy due to the sheer amount of information on the documents. They were almost impossible to forge. 'Well, almost isn't enough… No you told yourself you were done with that. That isn't you. But that's what I was. Damn why can't I just leave my past behind me. Those blasted memories,' he rambled to himself not realizing that she was finished and was handing his transcripts back. He cautiously snatched them back, asking, "Is everything complete?"

"Yep, everything checks out," she said calmly, almost friendly, "The new students leave on an airship Sunday morning, six o'clock sharp. Good luck."

'Geez, how will I survive till Sunday,' he thought, internally scowling. But on the exterior he simply grinned and said his thanks to the lady, leaving her to sit there and continue her mundane job. 'Mundane or not, It's a lot simpler than what I'm doing with my life.'

Now at this point it was unbelievably dark outside, the only illumination coming from the street lamps and the shattered moon floating in the sky. He amused himself thinking that the gods were showing a metaphor of his life. 'But all that will change now, I will go to Beacon, like I should have. This is the start of a new and unwritten chapter of my life,' he motivated himself, distracting himself and letting his legs carry him to the airport. But Sunday was a long time away and he wasn't sitting in such an open space for two days. Which meant, naturally, he climbed the nearest building that wasn't connected to the port and decided to take a quick lie down to collect his thoughts. However he quickly let the calming hands of sleep shut his eyes and cause him to fall in a deep slumber.

* * *

David was in a dark room, but he was comfortably lying on a mattress. He bolted upright, knowing something was wrong. He wore blue pyjamas and was lying in a queen-sized bed with navy blue sheets covering his body. Somewhere in the distance he heard a shrill cry of fear pierce the air to his right. He instantly swivelled his head in that direction, saw a wooden door and started walking to the door. However the door started to move from him.

He started a never-ending chase, trying to catch the door and see what was causing the ear piercing screams to cut through the air. He was sprinting for the door, almost reaching it. But, he accidentally fell over, allowing the door to escape. He reached for it but it was too far gone. This brought tears to his eyes, 'I can't do this. I can't help anyone. Not even the ones I care for.' At this he heard a deep growl from behind and heard claws slash through the air, and felt a deep pain in his side. After that he blacked out.

* * *

At once, David bolted up, grabbed his revolvers and scanned his immediate area. There was nothing around except a flock of birds, fluttering away, startled at the sudden movement. He was back on the rooftop. 'Dammit why does this keep happening? Why now?' The memories always hurt. They were one of the reasons why he was leaving the past behind him. However, they were never so vivid, so real. He forced himself to forget the dream, shoving it into a corner of his mind he never ventured to. At this point, the sun had started to rise again, marking off one day until he would walk away from the memories and all the other aspects of his life that dragged him down. 'But there's always something that just has to happen that screws everything up.' He stood there on the roof, silhouetted against the mosaic of colours brought by the sunrise, thinking and planning out a strategy. 'First I need to get rid of these clothes,' he thought to himself as he started to remove the jacket, revealing the combat armour he wore underneath. It appeared quite bulky, however it didn't hinder his movements. It was designed to provide protection while not restricting movement. It did the job perfectly. The vest was akin to that of a ballistic vest used by police officers, but was bulkier, yet lighter in weight, and was pure black. After removing the jacket he peeked over the edge of the building and, after checking for anybody, threw it over the edge. 'No reason to keep it after all.' With nothing else left, and the sun just above the horizon, he headed off into the city. 'I won't just sit and wait here for two days. That would just be an invitation for someone to spot me.' And so, he headed off.

* * *

It was an average day in Vale, just like the day before, with people going about their business. 'However, even the most average day can change completely,' he thought to himself as he recalled the previous day's events. He started going to different shops, wandering through them, looking at what they were selling, and walking out. This was his way of making sure he wasn't being followed by anyone. It worked well in the past and never once failed him once. The sun was starting to near its peak and so far nothing had happened, other than a few instances where he thought someone was actually following him. It was actually relaxing, especially for what had happened yesterday.

David was just about to open the door to a local weapons shop that he enjoyed checking out every time he could go there. Especially since he new the clerk and sometimes would just stand next to the counter, telling him what was happening. However this visit took a slightly different path. As he shoved the door open with his forearm, he felt the door stop, bounce back on him, and stop halfway open. Shortly afterwards he heard a small thump sound, followed by a quiet voice.

"Ouch, what just happened?" The voice asked, obviously as confused as David. The voice was feminine, that much he knew, however the voice sounded almost childish.

'Now what kid would be so interested in a weapons store?' he questioned himself as he walked through the doorway. After he searched for any other people in the store, but he only saw one other person. The person in question was a young girl, who was sitting flat on the floor. She had dark hair, with red highlights at the ends. She wore a red cloak and skirt, 'Geez, she looks no older than sixteen, why would she be here. Every day stranger things keep happening.'

"Excuse me, do you need help?" He asked the stranger, offering his hand.

She sighed, afterwards reaching for his hand. He pulled her gently to her feet. "So what is someone like you doing in a weapons shop? No offence but you seem a tad bit too young to have your own weapon," he pressed, not understanding much of the situation.

"Well, it's just that I really like seeing other weapons," she answered sheepishly, "besides I already have my own."

"Really," he said thoroughly puzzled, "now why would you need your own weapon?"

"I actually do need my own weapon because I've been attending Beacon for almost a whole year now. I'll soon be…"

"Hang on one moment," David cut her off, "how old are you exactly?"

"Sixteen years, why does it matter?"

"The minimum acceptance age is seventeen, that's why!"

"Well, umm, I kind of got moved ahead two years. You see..."

'Geez, what is happening?' He thought to himself as she talked about a story of a dust shop being robbed and how Roman Torchwick was there, 'Well then, Roman has been very active in his schemes over the past year,' then when Ruby had finished her story he brought himself back to the physical world. "Okay, sorry I bumped into you with the door. But I haven't even told you my name," he realized, "the names David Smith. Pleasure to meet you."

"Okay then David. My names Ruby. Ruby Rose."

"Well then, I will hopefully see you at Beacon. Later," he said while turning around to leave.

"W-wait, what do you mean, see you at Beacon?" she asked as he opened the door to leave.

"I am terribly sorry for not telling you, but I will be attending Beacon Academy starting Sunday," he spoke, sounding almost honoured to be attending Beacon. But, who wouldn't be grateful to be attending the most prestigious combat school in Vytal.

"Well, what are you doing until Sunday?"

'Well that is an excellent question, what am I going to do?' He stood there questioning himself. "Well I'm not exactly sure, I guess I'll figure it out as I go along."

"Well if you aren't doing anything I'd like you to meet the rest of my team, I think they'll really like you."

"Fine, I'll go meet you're team, however, I don't have to like it," he said jokingly.

"Yay," the response bringing a smile to the young girl's face, "the rest of my team is just at another shop. I was going to go back to them, but then I met you and now I want to introduce you to them," she spoke at an almost incomprehensible pace.

"Okay, let's not keep them waiting," he said, holding the door for her.

As they walked through the streets they made the usual small talk. But then Ruby asked him, "So, what's your story?"

The question caught him off-guard, "What do you mean?" he questioned nervously.

"Well, what have you done? I told you a little about me so tell me about you," she persisted.

"Well, it's just that, how to put it… I'm not really comfortable about talking about my past," he said becoming more nervous with every word, "It's not that I don't trust you, but it's just that I don't really want to tell you it right now. Maybe some other time."

She seemed disappointed at the response, "Fine, maybe another time."

Just then, a faint shout could be heard from behind the unlikely pair. "RUBY! Where have you been!?" As they turned and David caught the first glimpse of the shouter his blood ran cold.

'No, this isn't happening, this can't be happening. Why her and why now?' He thought to himself as the white clad heiress, Weiss Schnee, came strutting towards the pair. It was almost as if the universe had seen him having a good chat with Ruby and decided to throw another curve-ball into his life. 'Why does this keep happening to me?'

As she came to face them she turned to Ruby and began scorning her, but David couldn't pay attention to the conversation. His mind was elsewhere trying to piece together what to say. Then, Weiss finally realized his presence and shot him a look and proceeded to interrogate him. 'Well this should be interesting.'

"And who might you be," she asked him casually, yet there was the slightest touch of fire in her tone.

"Sorry, how rude of me. The name's David Smith, but you don't need to tell me your name," he said, putting on a façade of calmness, "Weiss Schnee, I presume."

"Well then, since we now know each other we can leave. Ruby let's go, we were getting worried," she told the young huntress, then turning on David she whispered, "I still don't trust you though."

"Wait a moment, we, who else is there?" David interjected.

As if on cue, a blonde woman with her hair flowing down to her waist ran up from behind David, flew past him and proceeded to question Ruby asking the obvious 'Where were you' first and then after receiving a sufficient answer, turned to David.

"Hello, the name's Yang," she said enthusiastically, extending out her hand, "Who might you be, Ruby's new boyfriend?"

"Yang, stop it," Ruby interjected, obviously embarrassed.

"David, pleasure to meet you, but no I'm not her boyfriend," he said, shaking her hand, perplexed about the amount of people he was meeting in such a short time span. "Okay, is there anyone else I need to meet?"

The universe answered by a simple tap on the shoulder, 'Oh right, she said her team was waiting for her and teams at Beacon comprised of four students.' He turned, locking his eyes with a pair of yellow ones. He quickly shifted his gaze from the eyes to the fourth team members face and extended his hand in greeting.

"David," he said, accepting the fact that there were no other introductions needed.

"Blake," she said back, shaking his hand, "We need to go," she said to her team over David's shoulder, "the last flight to Beacon leaves soon."

"Okay then," Ruby said, enthusiastic as ever, "and David, I'll see you soon at Beacon."

"Hope to see you there," he replied back, waving good-bye to the group. 'Well then, that was interesting. This is going to be a new chapter in my life and it's already turning out better than the last one ever had.' As he looked at them, watching Ruby explain the situation to her team-mates. He felt happy inside, because he knew that what he was looking at would soon be a part of his future. 'What has been going on, the past days have been insane. From everything that concerns Roman, to applying to Beacon and now Ruby and her team. Especially Weiss, but she's in the dark about everything. This is just too complicated. Stay focused, deal with everything one thing at a time. Take things slow. This isn't going to be a quick process, but once all the pieces come together it will all be fine.'

He walked off, his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face. It felt good to have a genuine smile on his face once again.

* * *

**I have a few things to say, one of which is thank you to all those who are reading this story. This is my first fanfic and first small scale project that I've done on my own and the support is appreciated. Secondly, uploads will be infrequent due to school work and exams. However, during the summer I will have more time to work on this and will do so. Also, the next few chapters will be coming out slowly due to the fact that David will have his own team. Which means I will have to think up three more characters on my own (well not really but most likely). So this is going to take a while, but afterwards it will be much more swift to make chapters. But I am working on chapter 3 so there's your little bit of hope for this series. Oh yes, expect cliffhangers because I really want to have people wondering what's going to happen next (if this chapter wasn't proof of that). So thank you and goodbye.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: The Shattering**

After David had left Ruby and her team, he began to wander around the city. He just had to think about everything, especially the dream he had the night before. 'What is going on? I told myself I would leave my past behind a long time ago, so why do I keep remembering it all?' As if on instinct his feet dragged him out to the one place he never wanted to go to. The cemetery. When he realized what was going on around him, he conceded and entered the cemetery. There was a reason he dreaded this cemetery, for it held all ties to his former life.

'It was so simple back then, everything had order to it. There was none of this madness, none of the lying, none of this bullshit was there,' as he wandered the cemetery he recalled his childhood, a time of happiness and friendship, love and kindness. He had all those things back then, but above all he had family. At the thought of his family his mind backlashed, causing a blinding headache to erupt in his mind. His vision blurred and his knees buckled causing him to kneel down. He clutched his forehead, trying to force the pain away. But the memories were too strong, too persistent. As he looked up, he noticed two gravestones in front of him. Each one had a name etched into it, both names he knew well. 'Gregory Smith' and 'Martha Smith' were emblazoned onto the markers.

As he read the names, he realized he couldn't contain the despair inside any more. So, he began to weep. It started as a slight trickle, then a steady stream formed and his tears flowed from his eyes. "I'm so sorry," he began to talk, as if the spirits of his mother and father were there, listening to him, "You must be ashamed of me, what I've done. I'm sorry I couldn't be the son you thought I'd be, but now that all changes. I'm going to do good for others, just like you did."

And so, he let his mind travel back. Back to the times when he knew what happiness was. Back to when he had a family. But most importantly, back to the day his life had been torn apart.

* * *

It was one year ago, he was 17 years and was attending Signal academy at the time, being in the last few days of school until he would head to Beacon. He however was a nobody at school, keeping to himself most of the time and rarely talking to others. He did know a few others though, he had especially admired a young girl, her hair black with red streaks on the ends. He admired her because she was always so energetic and light hearted, always looking on the brighter side of life. She tried to be friends with him, but he didn't seem to notice or he just didn't want friends, no one could tell. However, he was an excellent student, diligent at school work and an expert at sparing practice.

But, that's not what David was trying to remember. He was trying to remember that one night that everything changed. It was late one spring evening, he was waiting in his family's living room for his parents. His parents, hunting partners since their graduation from Beacon Academy, were out that night after they had been called out to deal with a pack of beowolves who had been attacking any travellers that crossed their path. But as the clock winded down till it was a few minutes till midnight, he began to worry. 'They must be late,' he reasoned, 'maybe there were more than they had anticipated or maybe they were out helping somewhere else.' That would be very much like them as they were very caring individuals. So, the optimist he was, decided to go to bed and not worry about them. But, he tossed and turned, wondering where they were. However, he managed to fall asleep.

The next morning when he rose from his sleep, they were nowhere to be seen. 'They must be out on another mission, that usually happens,' he told himself, calming his nerves. He went about his day, but throughout it there was a constant sense of dread in his heart. As he returned home, this dread was put to rest. But, in its place new emotions emerged. It all began when he saw the strange man in front of his house's door. He appeared very official, his gray hair seemed to turn silver in the shine of the moon. He stood there, a cane, pressed to the ground, in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other.

"Why hello there," the man said, as David approached, "how are you?"

"Just fine, but I might I ask who you are?" he asked quizzically.

"Professor Ozpin, headmaster of Beacon Academy," he answered, "but I already know who you are David."

"So, why are you here any ways? If you are a headmaster you must have important responsibilities."

Ozpin sighed, "This is important business, business that involves you."

That caught David's attention, the way he said it, the way he didn't look straight at David, that's what made him worried. "What do you mean it involves me?"

"It pains me deeply to tell you this," he said with a grave tone to his voice, "your parents aren't coming back."

This statement worried David, the dread welling in his mind, "W-what do you mean they aren't coming back."

"They're gone, David, they're dead."

Those words broke David, his heart shattered, as did the world he knew. The only thing that he had in his life was gone, ripped away in an instant. 'How could that be? There's no way, he's lying. They aren't dead, they're just missing. There's no way, no way…' No matter how much he forced himself not to believe, he knew deep down, that it was true. He just didn't want to believe.

"I'm sorry to tell you this, but we had to let you know," that was all David heard him say. He stopped listening and walked past him into his house, leaving him standing at the door.

David sat on the floor, head in hands, tears rolling down his face. There was nothing left for David. He had lost his family and there was no one he could turn to for comfort. 'What is there left? What could I possibly do? There's nothing left in my life but sadness and despair.' That night he had much difficulty falling to sleep. But when he did, his mind was plagued with memories of his parents and them dying, holding on and then, leaving him alone in the world.

After that day David became a shell of his former self. Where before he secluded himself, he now was almost non-existent except for going to classes. After a few days he became used to it, except for the attention he was receiving. He red haired girl was always wondering what was happening and seemed worried for him. But one day she left, he didn't know why she had but the next day a letter came in. It was from her.

'Hello everyone, this first day at Beacon was really strange. I met a lot of people, but some were nicer than others. After my sister left me for her friends I tripped over a girl's luggage. Apparently her name is Weiss Schnee and she's apparently really important. She yelled at me for tripping over her luggage and she was really mean about it. Then the craziest thing happened where I pretty much blew up a hole in front of the school. I don't know how it happened but then the mean girl yelled at me some more because of it. Then someone else came and defended me but left before I could ask what her name was. Then I met a really nice guy. His name is Jaune. He's nice but he seems nervous. Anyway that's what's been happening to me this first day at Beacon. I'll keep telling you what's going on over the next weeks.

Wish you were here with me,

Ruby Rose'

After that he didn't talk to anyone, even those he did talk to on occasion. He focused on his school work. Because he had an idea. 'I'll go to Beacon, train to become a hunter and find those Grimm that killed them. Then, I'll show no mercy. I will avenge them.' This is what drove him forward, day by day. He would constantly remind himself what he was striving for.

Five days after what he always called The Shattering, David lay in bed, forcing himself to sleep, he thought to himself, 'If I wait to graduate from Beacon, those beowolves might already be dead. Then it will all have been in vain. They must die from my hand.' So he got up, adorned himself in his combat armor, grabbed his father's bolt-action rifle, loaded the weapon and set out into the wilderness surrounding the city of Vale. After that day he wasn't seen again for three months. People worried, but eventually he was forgotten.

* * *

"That was a different time. I thought I had a purpose in life, but all I wanted was vengeance. I was blinded by hate and stricken with grief," he told the gravestones of his parents, "I was ambitious and short-sighted. But now I have purpose. To honor your memory I won't seek destruction and vengeance. Instead I will be like you, helping others by doing what's right. That's all you wanted from me and that's what I'll do. I've tainted our name so much, but I'll build it back up. I hope you two can forgive me for what I've done."

He stood up slowly, took one last look at the grave markers and left his parents to rest. But as he walked away, he thought he heard someone whisper 'I love you always' into his ear. It was a voice that was one he hadn't heard for months, but knew it was one of genuine love and compassion. For it was the voice of his mother.

And so he walked off, his head held high and pride returning to his heart, after one year of absence. With nowhere specifically to go, he went to the docks, found a bench, and sat, staring out into the waters, watching the stars' reflections in the water.

* * *

**A.N. So there's chapter 3. For those who couldn't tell, this is designed to close one pothole while inadvertently making an existing one larger. Don't blame me, I mostly ad-lib these chapters, while having a definite goal in mind. Also, I would like to inform all of you that read this that I found a loop hole and can avoid the process of needing to make more OCs. However, that doesn't mean specifically that David is the only one. You all will just have to wait and see. Also, any constructive criticism is greatly appreciated considering I don't write stories very often. But I feel that this will be a great story. Remember, all criticism is good criticism. It helps to improve the criticised. Also, I am a very open-minded and imaginative person. So there's some hope that this will be good. But, until the next chapter, goodbye and have a fantastic day.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Quick notice, if you find something grammatically incorrect in the story or I write something counter-intuitive, message me where it is and in which chapter so can fix it. You'll be helping me out and improving the reading experience for everyone. Any ways, here is chapter four!**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Changing Views**

The next morning, as David stirred from his slumber, laying in an alley on a mattress, he felt like something was different. Not different like something bad was happening that he couldn't see, but merely feel. Instead he just felt like something was…different. Then, he realized it was the way he woke from his sleep. He wasn't in a cold sweat, bolting upright in panic from some new nightmare conjured by his mind. Instead, he slowly woke up, content with a good night's rest. 'When was the last time that happened?' he questioned jokingly, 'Way back when I would wake up, get prepared for the new day and head out to Signal.' The thought brightened his sour heart, bringing a smirk to his face as he reminisced the memories.

As he started walking around the city, he thought of the interaction with his mind. 'Something's changing, the memories don't bring headaches any more, quite the contrary. Also, that was actually some well needed rest that I got, uninterrupted by some crazy dream.' As he pondered this he noticed something. He heard a cry for help, closely followed by voices filled with scorn. He turned in the direction of the noise to find two guys, young adults, pushing around a young female wolf faunus, her black hair tangled and mated. 'What the…? Those little punks, does nobody in this entire universe know kindness!' So, he strode up to them.

"Gentlemen, what appears to be the problem?" he inquired, keeping his anger in check, for now.

As he spoke, they turned to him, releasing their grip slightly, looked him over and blew him off, one saying, "Get lost, this is none of your business."

"But I believe it is until you explain why you are doing what you are doing," he said, adding a little venom into his voice at the end.

"Look buddy," the first one continued, "if you think you threaten me, you're wrong, possibly dead wrong if you get what I mean." He finished the statement by brandishing a switch blade in his hand.

"Can't we just be civilized men and just leave the woman alone before we both do something we regret. Today is a fine day and I would hate to spoil it so early in."

"Why don't you walk away before that and forget about this. It'll just be easier."

"Sorry, but I have a thing against people like you, people who just cause trouble because they want to feel superior over others. Well, might I say, that just makes you lower than those you oppress."

"Why you," the first one growled, taking a swing at David.

'Well, I tried reasoning,' he thought too himself casually. Then, springing into action he kicked the man's hand causing him to drop his blade. The attack caught him off guard, allowing David to bring his other foot to kick the man's jaw, cracking it. The impact caused the man to fall over onto his back.

"Ow, that hurt you little prick!" is what David thought the man said. It was a tad difficult to understand, taking into account the cracked jaw.

David ignored him, instead turning to the other man, who still had his hands on the girl's shoulders. He began walking towards the pair, causing the man to release his grip, raising his hands up and backing away from David. 'Smart man,' David thought.

Turning his attention to the faunus he gazed at her. Not a piercing, menacing gaze, but a more calming gaze. She began profusely thanking the man who had just saved her, saying that the two others had grabbed her and had threatened her, saying she was worthless. Amidst her rambling David put a finger to her lips, saying, "There's no explanation needed, those guys were just being jerks. Trust me, they won't be hurting anyone else," he began gazing at the man who had been holding the faunus, "Am I clear or do I need another example?" The man began furiously shaking his head in a no response. "Good, now," he turned to the faunus, "get going. Good luck and safe travels."

* * *

After that little mishap, David continued to his original destination. He finally felt like he could, after so long. The place where he once was a pure soul, before the storm that ravaged his life. He was headed home.

His childhood home had been nothing special, a small house, able to fit four comfortably under normal circumstances. However when two residents are a hunter and huntress, it could accommodate three just fine. As he looked over the house, he realized it was completely unchanged. There was no mold or any structural damages. 'Well it should stay that way, it's a good home that once housed great people.' As he opened the door, he realized how unchanged it truly was. Everything had been kept exactly as he had left it the day he left. Which meant that the place was torn up like a dust cluster had exploded in the centre of it. Dents had been carved into the wall from him throwing violent punches into them. He had a dark side, he already knew that, but he looked at the dents and realized how bad it could be if he lost control of his temper. 'Damn, those guys back there are lucky they even had jaws after that,' he thought, looking back on his anger at the time. He knew his temper could be a little… excessive at times, but he didn't realize how bad it actually was. 'Well, there's another thing to put on the agenda of things I should improve. I wonder how the rest of the place is,' he thought as he continued to explore the house.

* * *

There was nothing else interesting about the house. That was because the house had remained surprisingly untouched since he left. There was the basic things here and there, expired food, a few mice, but mostly preserved as it had been. But David wasn't here to reminisce over the past. Instead he was here for the one thing he had always thought of getting from the old building, but never actually could find a time to go and retrieve then damn thing. He attempted to open a door, resulting in its hinges coming loose and falling off. 'Better add rot to the list of things wrong with this building.' As he let the door fall from his grip and produce a solid 'thud' as it hit the floor, he inspected the room. It was a plain square room, like many others in the house, however this one was special. It housed a large reinforced steel safe. The strong box stood against the back wall ominously. However David didn't care for the safe itself. He wanted to claim the contents of the safe for himself. He walked up to it and looked the massive box over. It was 6 feet tall and just as wide. The walls of the safe were three inches thick, meaning nothing short from a massive explosion would dent the box. However, David didn't need to break the box open; he just had to type out the key code into the keypad of the safe. As he put in the code, he remembered what his father had told him.

"When you're older, if you are ever in danger, come here and grab what you need. We won't question why you need it. Just be careful and you won't need it. Promise me you'll stay safe," those were the words of his father and from David's viewpoint, he was most certainly in trouble. As he finished the memory the safe made a satisfying 'clunk' sound. He gripped the handle and pulled open the door. The safe door swivelled open to reveal its contents. The contents were quite spectacular actually. A single bolt-action rifle, equipped with a variable zoom scope, infra-red vision and was capable of firing a variety of ammunition including high-powered, armor-piercing and the grandest of them all, dust coated penetrator, all of which was in the safe as well. 'Thanks dad, I think that this will do me well for my new line of work. Then again, it would have been helpful before…' David cut himself off, 'No, don't think about that, that's the past and that's not who you are not any more. Then again the past always somehow comes crawling right back to me.' He began pondering his past intentions. 'Why was I so naïve, thinking that things would change without taking initiative? Why was so short-sighted about what I was truly doing?' He found himself answering his own question, 'I was blinded by grief and anger. Angry that I was powerless, angry that I couldn't change what was happening. That won't happen again. Never will I be that shell of a man again, doing whatever I'm told to without thinking.'

* * *

After grabbing the sniper rifle, David took one last look around the house, just in case he had missed anything. He walked into his old room and looked around in the drawers for anything he may have missed. As he opened the drawer of his night-stand, he found a small box. This box held a lot of memories. It was an ornate box, with golden trim covering the cyan paint in intricate patterns that swirled across the. He opened the box to find a tiny figurine in a leaping pose, standing on a pedestal in the centre. He looked at the box, the music box his mother had given him on his tenth birthday. He forced back a tear of joy with a sniffle of the nose. 'How in the name of dust did this survive, in such pristine condition?' he thought to himself as he began to twist a small key on the side. After twisting it three full times, he let it turn in the opposite direction, allowing a harmonious melody to fill the air. The small, gentle notes filed his mind, seeping into the dark recesses of his mind and put them to ease. He felt truly at peace, allowing his mind to wander back through time. He remembered having fun with his parents during sunny days and huddling up to them on stormy ones. All his mind could find was good memories, never daring to dredge up a bad one. But throughout the memories he could only think of himself and his selfish nature. 'No matter how hard I tried I knew they weren't coming back. But I ignored that and all the good in my life, instead choosing to push everything in my life into a dark corner. I wasn't thinking right. But now, I'm a different person. Now have a real attainable goal. I have friends who I can trust on and who trust in me. I may be a darkened soul, but there's still a spark of hope inside. And even the smallest spark can turn into a burning passion. That's what I'll do. I tainted my name and the name of my parents, but I'll work to make it pure once more. All those who I've wronged, I only hope that they can forgive me for me sins.' At the end of the monologue David heard a faint whisper in the depths of his subconscious tell him, "All in good time my boy. Don't let us down."

As David stood inside the house that was once his home, he realized that the day was Saturday. Tomorrow was the day he'd finally start to change his ways. 'All will be well, now that I'll finally be making a difference. But is this really what is meant for me?' he began questioning himself, 'Of course, this is how I'll change my life. I will never be what I was before. That is a promise I can make. But then again, how many promises have been broken in the past. But everything I have done, whether I like it or not, I had a reason to do it at the time.' With a flurry of thoughts racing in his mind and a setting sun streaming sun through the windows, David went to his old bedroom and decided to take one final rest in his home. When he would wake a new chapter in life would begin in his book of life.

* * *

**A.N. So, in the next chapter David will finally be going to Beacon. Hurrah, let the trumpets sound. But, in all honesty, these first few chapters were just character building for David. Also, they were used to create plot points in the story that I will be filling in future chapters. And by future I mean heavily in the future. I don't know how long this will go on for, but then again many other fanfictions have numerous chapters. But, I'm just rambling on about different topics. In conclusion, basic character building is over (only took damn near five chapters), David heading to Beacon and more cliffhangers, just like every chapter thus far. So I hope you enjoyed, reviews appreciated and if you think others might like this story, tell them about it. Unless you don't want to or don't have friends (if either one is you then you are in my boat as well). But, hope you come back to read the next chapter. I'll see you again, hopefully...**


	5. Chapter 5

**A.N. So, you know how I said these chapters will be infrequent. Yeah, the real reasons they'll be coming out when they do consists of the following reasons: school work (which there isn't much left of considering summer's almost here and school's winding down), social life with friends (which doesn't really exist, because I'm a real nobody at school, much like David [considering he's extremely loosely based on aspects of my personality] but there are a few friends), going out and about (again, doesn't happen often), and the most time consuming of them all, the entirety of the internet (basically YouTube, Rooster Teeth and this website right here) and video games. Oh, and also the fact that I'm a human being who requires sleep. But other than that I have all the time in the world, so I will eliminate as many unnecessary aspects as possible and put more time into chapter planning, writing and editing. So after that massive knowledge dump of my life and excuses, onto the story. Also, I'll be switching the entire perspective of the story to a first person instead of the third person I had been using. t's simply a design change, just to make him a more centralized part. Then again, how more centralized can you get if you're the main character.**

* * *

**Chapter 5: A Beacon of Hope**

As I shook off the last remnants of sleep I realized that the day was Sunday. I bolted upright, suddenly wide awake. 'Well, today's the day,' I told myself with a small grin on my face. Then as I turned to get out of bed, I noticed the time that the digital clock displayed. It read out 4:40 A.M. "You are joking me?!" I shouted at the clock, remembering the Bullhead was scheduled to depart at six o'clock. I rummaged through the room, grabbing my supplies for Beacon, quickly slipping into my clothes and bolting out the front door. I looked to the watch on my wrist to find the time was 5:00. I glanced over my shoulder to look at my old home one last time, then, with a large case in hand, I began to sprint through the streets.

Luckily it was early morning, the sun barely over the horizon, meaning there were very few pedestrians in the streets. I dashed through the streets as fast as my feet could carry me, skidding around corners and narrowly evading foot traffic. 'I am not going to miss that flight,' I repeated in my head thinking of the reasons to run to it. There was almost too many to even count. But no matter the reasons, I kept running. The question in my head was, 'Am I running towards a brighter future or from a terrible past? It's a combination of the two,' I realized, thinking of the good I could do for the future and the darkness of my past. I shook the thoughts from my head as I almost flew past the main entrance to the port. I skidded to a halt and realized how tired actually was. But no matter what I had to keep pushing forwards until the Bullhead's doors had sealed. Glancing at a clock I read the time out; 5:20 to the second. "Hahaha, that was fast," I humoured myself realizing that the port was three kilometres from my house. 'Well, I have some time to relax now.'

* * *

As I began making my way to where the Bullhead would be taking off, I looked over my shoulder to see a man walking a few meters behind me taking mental note of his attire. 'Black hat and jacket, check. Red tinted glasses, check. Well this I just perfect,' I thought as I realized why he was here. I kept walking until I came into a hallway. At the end, two of my follower's associates appeared at the end of the hallway, blocking the doorway out. I turned to exit, but noticed that there were two others at that end as well. So, with nothing else to do, I began to converse with them.

"Gentlemen, if you could just move, that would be greatly appreciated," I told the two at the end of the hall I had originally been headed to.

"Well, it looks like he wants me to move, isn't that funny?" one of them began joking to the other, "Because right now, I think I'll stay right here."

I grasped the bridge of my nose and began shaking my head, "Look, I have a flight need to catch, so it would save us both time if you just moved out of the way," I spoke, checking my wrist watch. 5:35 it read on the display.

"Sorry, but It appears as if your flight has been cancelled," he stated as he lunged towards me, hand clenched in a fist.

'Didn't these guys ever learn,' I thought as I dropped the case and jumped back. The first strike missed leaving the opponent bent over, back hunched. So, with swift grace, I leapt into the air, bringing my foot down onto his back, causing him to collapse to the ground, a satisfying crack breaking through the air.

His attack set the other fiends into motion. They all ganged up on me, surrounding me in an ever-shrinking triangle. I took in the surroundings, trying to find a way I could gain a slight advantage. The hallway was barren, a simple square cut-out, with a wall to one side and a window to the other. Both walls had a hand rail attached to them. So, as my thoughts raced at Mach speed through my mind, the enemies attacked. As, they threw their punches, I deftly dodged around their attacks, grabbing my luggage and punched one in the gut as I moved. They appeared confused for a split second, allowing me to kick out the injured one's legs. After getting him into a sufficient choke-hold, I yanked him back to his feet and proceeded to shuffle to my exit with hostage in tow. Surprisingly no one had yet seen the battle. "Don't do anything rash, you'll regret it," I spat out to the remaining two. I was high on adrenaline. My muscles twitched, urging me to twist the man's neck, but I held back. There was no way I'd do it. Not even to this worthless scum. So, as I backed through the door, I knocked the hostage out, grabbed a conveniently placed metal bar and slid it through the door's handles. After that I came to terms with what had just happened and collapsed to the floor.

Kneeling down, I felt the epinephrine drain from my system. I lazily looked around the room was in and was pleasantly surprised to see my intend destination. I slowly rose to my feet, dusted off my armour, grabbed my case and walked off to the Bullhead's landing pad. 'Well, looks like I made it in one piece. But those four were an unnecessary thorn I my side. Hat lengths some people will go to just to tie up a few loose ends; don't even consider myself a loose end,' I thought to myself, while a maelström of thoughts flitted through my mind, "Apparently I'm just a liability." But as my head swarmed with thoughts, I was eventually snapped out of it when I looked at my watch.

It was ten minutes till the Bullhead would take off, yet there was a small amount of people in the port and among that only a few appeared that they would be heading to Beacon. 'What in the world is going on?' I questioned no one, 'There's barely anyone here and of those that are, only a few actually look the part.' I didn't ask, thinking that I was on an early flight and that there would be more coming at a later point in the day. So, I waited out the last few minutes, then I boarded the airship.

* * *

It was like something out of a fantasy, flying through the sky in an airship, while looking out over the city's structures and looking forwards at Beacon Academy. Or at least that's what came to my mind as I gazed out of the large windows that lined the sides of the airship. The academy, as its name suggested was like a massive beacon, shining in the early morning light. It was all so scenic, causing me to regain a calm demeanour about me. But I was still extremely confused at the lack of other students, I began to conjure logical explanations in my mind to set it at ease. But there was always a slight off-putting feel to the situation, like a monster was lurking in the shadows of a brightly lit room, with me as the target. And that, I couldn't explain, because quite often, my unease, was usually for good reason.

But as the airship closed in on the academy, I could only think of the only actual person I knew at the academy; Ruby Rose, the young energetic huntress in training who I now remembered as the girl at Signal who had tried to help me in the beginning. 'Hmph, I wonder if she'll remember me, after all, she hadn't before. However, I did approach her like a complete stranger, not even remembering her until I had found the first letter that had been sent to Signal in my dresser drawer. Maybe when I show her that she'll remember me. It'll be a late reunion.' I looked forward to the meeting. But, then there was her team, who were also nice people. The whole of them seemed like good, kind-hearted individuals. Well, maybe not the ice queen, as I had begun to refer to Weiss as, ever since she had cold shouldered me at our first meeting. 'Then again, people change along with circumstances and vice versa. So, there's always hope and no matter how far you are pushed away, it follows, giving us a reason to push back.' Dad's favourite quote, supplied by himself. He was such an optimist, seeing not darkness and devastation, but a small light inside it that contained righteousness. How true that was, since it is in all of us. It's the world we lived in; the good and the evil, the two heads of one lien coin. The dark killer in us, covered in a shroud of light, threatening to break loose and rip everything to shreds, 'Or is that just me and my imagination of the world,' I reflected. But my philosophical reflection on life and its meanings was interrupted by a loudspeaker, saying that we were to arrive at Beacon shortly. 'And so, let's begin.'

* * *

**A.N. So, once again, a chapter completed and David is finally at Beacon. However I am a scheming and conniving jerk who creates elaborate cliffhangers to keep you coming back to find a conclusion. Or you call me an a-hole and move on, forgetting this story in the process. But, I appreciate those who stick around and especially appreciate a member by the name of JCDisme who followed the story first, which is shocking to me that someone enjoys my work that much. So a great thanks to you my good fellow. But, also a great thanks to all of those who are reading this story. It's a first, feeble attempt at a fanficton, but then again even the greatest of individuals started somewhere. I'm not saying I'm a J. K. Rowling, but I'm getting better at writing through this. And it's an outlet to let my ideas flow from. So, thank you all for reading this. It means a lot. Now, if you have any criticism or praise for the story a good place to put it would be in a review, considering there are none. So, is the story really great or is it a disgrace. or perhaps it's just right. I'm unsure. But, as I digress I will end it here. So when the next chapter gets posted you'll know where to find me.**

**-TheInnerPeace signing off (not forever though)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: A Not-So-Difficult Choice**

So, as the Bullhead began its landing sequence I continued to think of the next few days. 'What will happen that will screw up everything?' I began questioning, always the optimistic type. However, in the past week alone my luck had taken a turn from bad to absolutely abysmal. 'There's always the chance that something I say will be counterintuitive. Also, this could be a well laid trap to haul my unfortunate hide off to prison. But then again, this is pretty much a clean slate for my life. So, it could go either way.' So, when the Bullhead was finally docked I spent no time in waiting and exited to get my first view of the school. Quite frankly, it was one helluva view.

The school itself had appeared massive on the way towards it, but now, up close, the main building looked magical. Like a page was ripped from a childhood fairytale and was created into a real building. It was similar to that of a small castle, the major dominating colour of the school building being white. It was all a breathtaking scene, but what made it truly magical was when I looked at where I would be heading. Standing in the middle of the main pathway leading to the school stood a familiar huntress in training. "Hello over there!" I yelled over to her as began walking up to her. Once I was face to face with her I started what I thought would be a very long conversation, "I told you I'd make it," I said, beginning to walk beside her towards the main building.

"I'm glad you did," she began, a grin on her face, "You seem like a nice person and I didn't want to just have one conversation with you."

"Huh, well that marker had passed a while ago," I teased.

She looked at puzzled, stopping as she did, "Wait, what do you mean by that?"

"Here, this should context," I said, reaching to my pocket to pull out a neatly folded piece of stationary.

She grabbed the paper, unfolding it as she brought it towards her face for her to read. After roughly a minute of her reading it, her expression changed as she read who the letter's writer was. She looked at me quizzically, asking me, "How in the world did you get this?"

"Because I was one of the few people you had sent that to. After all you were always so kind, I just never told you how much that kindness meant," I told her, recounting in the back of my head how she was always so helpful to me, even though not many others were.

I saw in her eyes the gears turning in her head as she came to the realization, "David! How did I not remember you when we first met?"

"Well, I was the same for a while, but that letter reminded me of you. Besides, it's been a little over a year since we had met each other, so don't be too hard on yourself."

"Wow this is so exciting, having a friend from Signal with me at Beacon. You're the first one after all. But, why didn't we ever see each other before last Friday?" she asked me, causing m to become confused.

"What do you mean by that, I just got here?" I suddenly was in the dark again, not knowing what she meant by her question.

"Well, I believe I should explain some things to you then, David," a voice said from behind me. I turned around to see Professor Ozpin standing behind me, cane in one hand and coffee mug in the other. The entire situation was confusing me greatly, filling my head with even more questions.

"Wait, hang on for five seconds," I began saying, waving my hands in front of me, "What is going on here? Because, to be honest, I have no clue what you two are talking about."

"Well then," Ozpin said, walking towards the main building, "follow me and I'll explain the situation."

'Great,' I told myself, following behind the headmaster, 'whenever someone uses the words situation, it means that there is something wrong, usually something that is extremely wrong.'

* * *

As I followed Ozpin I began to really admire the school, not just for its architecture but for the students attending. As I walked past them, I stopped and began watching sparing matches between students. They were all quite skilled, most matches ended because of a minor slip in a defense, 'But that's all it really takes, a small chink in the impenetrable armor and you can win.' But, as I looked around the students there was a student who wasn't doing so hot. He looked tired, his blond hair covering the sweat that dripped from his forehead. He was up against a taller student, slightly taller than me only because of his hair, who had a smirk of confidence across his face. It was clear the blond one was outmatched. That's not to say he wasn't skilled, he did perform some elaborate maneuvers. His opponent was using his greater height and strength to his advantage. Now, if the smaller could use his own strengths to tip his enemies strengths to weaknesses, he would win for sure. "Hey," I called to Ozpin, "give me a second, I want to talk to someone, if that's okay."

Ozpin simply gestured his hand at the two I had been watching, as if he knew what I would be doing. 'Well, he probably knew who was a likely candidate.' So I walked up to the duel and watched the blond one get shoved by his opponent. He proceeded to land at the tips of my boots. "Having a bit of trouble?" I asked in a non-'I-think-you-have-no-idea-what-you're-up-against-way' but it was a little difficult.

"Tell me about it, I just can't get a hit on Cardin," he told me.

'So, his name's Cardin, I'll take note of that,' I thought to myself, quickly turning to Cardin's human punching bag, "So, umm…"

"Jaune," he answered my unasked question.

"So, Jaune, it's clear to me that he has the advantage in size and strength," upon hearing this Jaune sighed loudly, "but, his weapon is much more cumbersome than your sword. So there's one advantage. Also, you have you're shield, giving extra defence, so if you use both of those to your advantage, you should be able to take even the odds. Always look for an enemy's disadvantages so you can turn them into a strength for you. Watch," I ended and walked to where Jaune had been, "Hey, Cardin!" He turned to face me, "How 'bout you and me duel."

"Are you sure you want to stand in for Jauney boy over there?"

"Absolutely, in fact, I'll give you first strike," I told him, having a hint of mockery in my voice.

Upon hearing this, he readied his weapon and I pulled out Rock, leaving Sling in its holster, changing it to melee form. So, he charged at me, winding up for an overhead strike. I deftly avoiding the attack, I swung at the back of his knee, causing him to kneel, allowing for a whack across the face. He staggered up and back from the attack, giving me a chance to slip behind him. Cardin shook of the shock from the attack and looked for me in front of him. 'To him I've disappeared, perfect.' So, with the element of stealth, I kicked out his legs and grabbed him by the throat in a choke-hold, using Rock as a holding device. "So, do you give up?" I asked him as he struggled, using all his strength to escape. But, it wasn't enough and as his body began to grow weak from fatigue I released him and walked back to Ozpin. But, as I walked back, I noticed every student was tracking me. Since I was stood beside Jaune I leaned over and whispered, "Why is everyone giving me strange looks?"

"Because Cardin is one of the strongest students here and you took him down without taking a single hint."

I simply shrugged saying, "Well, like I said, use his own advantages against him. Also, if he's the strongest, he was overconfident since we had never fought before. Besides, it could have been a lot worse for him."

As I walked back to Ozpin, he began congratulating me, "Well, that was quite a spectacle if I may say. Mr. Winchester is a most skilled combatant. Yet, you took him down without a single wound to you."

I shrugged, "Well, I guess I could be a very lucky man."

"I'd hardly say that," he said with a small laugh, "Now, if you would continue following." So, I complied and began following him nice more. Now that I had an actual fight here, with the apparently mighty Cardin Winchester, I had a reputation here; it being a good thing or not is yet to be seen.

* * *

So, after a few, uneventful minutes of walking, Ozpin stopped at the end of a hall. He opened the door in front of him and stepped out of the way, allowing me to enter in front of him. The office was simple enough, a box shape with a window that overlooked the main courtyard directly across from the door. A wooden desk was positioned in front of the window with the basics on it; pens and pencils, scattering of papers, a monitor to observe reports and other assorted trinkets. There was a large bookcase that contained numerous relics across its shelves. All in all, it was a pretty standard office, especially for a headmaster. Ozpin walked into the room and proceeded to sit at his desk. He gestured at a chair in front of his desk; I complied and sat in the chair. And so the conversation began.

"So, David Smith, that name certainly stirs memories."

"None of which I would enjoy remembering, if that's okay with you. I just want to know what you were talking about back at the landing area."

"Of course, what would you like to know?"

"I would like to know what Ruby was talking about. Why I hadn't seen her before Friday to be more specific," I said, impatient about not being in the know.

"Well, that I can explain. She was confused about that because the second year of her training started a few weeks ago, which means that your second year would have been going for the same time as you should have arrived at the same time as her. That is why she was confused, because to her, you had been here for the same amount of time as she has without ever introducing yourself."

The whole speech left me with more questions than answers. The main one that gnawed at my brain was what I would do now. I had spent so much time trying to start over with a new life. Now, as if on cue, life threw me a grenade with the pin pulled out, allowing me to watch my plans detonate in my face. 'So, my narrow-mindedness in my past is now coming to bite me now. Well, I should expect no less from my luck and karma,' I thought to myself, being thoroughly annoyed with the explanation.

However, Ozpin wasn't finished, "Looking back in my records it seems as if a David Smith had been scheduled to be on the flight to Beacon for initiates last year. But he was unable to make the flight due to 'unforeseen circumstances -"

'Unforeseen isn't quite accurate, but it works.'

"- and it seems as if you are that David Smith. Now I have a proposition for you, if you would like to listen."

"Okay, I'm all ears, because any alternative is more preferable to me right now."

"Well then, I'm giving you two options. First, you can stay at Beacon, train like any other student and be considered in your second year. Because looking at past educational records, you already know a majority of the first year material. The second option is that you can walk down to the Bullhead and return to Vale. But, that would mean going back to your past pursuits which would mean going back to your past situations and like you said, any alternative is more preferable."

"You're a real silver-tongued devil, but I am no liar when I say that any alternative is better so I accept your offer."

"Good, now tomorrow you will be going through the initiation process like all other students must, but I will spare you the details till tomorrow. However, you will not have your own partner through the initiation, nor will you be assigned a team afterwards."

So, as we walked to the door to exit his office I began to hear scuttling on the other side of it. Instinctively, I pushed ahead of Ozpin, readied my handguns and breached through the doorway nearly knocking it off its hinges. I began pointing guns at people until I started recognizing the faces of the noisemakers.

Ruby, Yang and Weiss were all stood in the middle of the hall, a few feet from the door, but only centimeters from my weapons' barrels. They all had an expression of pure shock and terror on their faces; I couldn't blame them, as I knew how terrifying it was having a weapon's muzzle pressed against my head. I quickly holstered my weapons and began apologizing profusely to the three teammates, "I am so sorry. I didn't know it was you and my instincts sort of kicked in and I just -"

"Well might I ask you why your first instincts are to point your weapons at the nearest person?" Weiss spat back, obviously agitated at the commotion.

"Well then may I ask why the three of you are spying on my conversation? I'm really confused at why my appearance is so important to you?"

"Well," Yang began, "Ruby was curious about what you two were talking about and then I saw you fight Cardin and when we told Weiss and Blake about it and we wanted to know what you two were talking about. Besides it was Weiss' idea."

"No it wasn't," Weiss began arguing with her teammate.

'Good grief, is this what's going to be my future. Well, it'll be interesting,' I thought, shaking my head and snickering to myself as the argument unfolded in front of me. All that I saw was a pseudo sibling rivalry unfolding in front of me. They were all made for each other. But I wouldn't have those same experiences as I wouldn't have a team of my own. But, I had a new life and I finally had people I could trust. Ruby, Yang, Weiss and Blake, all were good people and would be good friends, I knew it.

But, during their argument, Ozpin interjected, saying, "Now, when the three of you are done, could you take Mr. Smith to his dorm. It will be the empty dorm beside yours."

"Okay, Ozpin we'll get right on that," Ruby assured him, then turning to her still arguing teammates, told them, "Alright you two, you can keep arguing later."

'Well, I'm just happy to be here. I could sit on the courtyard's concrete and still be able to sleep better than I've ever been able to do. But Ozpin, he knows more than he cares to tell. He must have a plan for me and that worries me. Because the last person who had a plan for me now wants to see a knife jutting out of my neck,' the gruesome thought flashed through my head, 'Well then, if that is going to happen, he'll need to spend a lot more money for a killer.'

* * *

After we got to the building that held my room we had been walking up the staircase when Yang asked, "So what did you mean by any alternative is preferable?"

The question made me stop dead in my tracks. Which meant that, since I was in front, everyone else had to stop right behind me. Facing forward up the stairs, I answered, "It means that any situation is better than my last one."

Yang persisted, "So what was your last 'situation' as you call it?"

"Look," I said turning around, the anger seeping through my voice, "if I don't come to you to talk about my past, then don't bother asking. I'm not asking what you've done before, so I expect the same courtesy." 'Okay, calm down, she's just curious, but dammit, there's some rocks that are meant to stay unturned.'

"Sorry, I was just wondering. It just was so mysterious the way you said it," she began apologizing.

"Huh, I know, it's just, I'm not proud of what I did. It was just; why does this need to be so complicated?" I lost my thoughts, trying desperately to regain them.

Ruby put her hand on my shoulder, "Don't worry, when you're comfortable you can tell us, right?" She was really good at comforting people.

I looked into her silver eyes, "Okay, that sounds good. But, it'll be awhile, I can tell you that." So, after that we continued to walk onward towards my dorm.

* * *

Once we go to my dorm room we parted ways and walked into the door to the left of mine. 'So that's their dorm. Well, keep your friends close, but usually it's your enemies who are the closest to you.' I walked into the dorm, taking in the surroundings. There was a single bed tucked under a window across from the door. The window gave a breathtaking view of the sun setting over the horizon. Everything else was pretty standard, dresser drawer right of the bed, personal bathroom and other such dormitory necessities. I gently placed my luggage onto the ground, as I had been carrying the dead weights in my hands the entire day. I began checking the contents, making sure everything was here with me, when I heard murmurs coming from the wall to the left side of the room. That was the wall between my room and team RWBY's room. 'Well then, if they can listen to my conversations, so can I,' I told myself, focusing intensely on the voices from the other room. Then, I began to hear their voices.

"- shouldn't have eavesdropped on his meeting with Ozpin," Blake's voice came through, most likely scolding her teammates.

"Well I hadn't seen him for a year and I wanted to catch up on what we'd missed," Ruby replied.

"Well, I don't think he'll ever tell us. He was very cryptic about your questions," Weiss replied, most likely right in her statement.

"Well, Blake told us about her past and who she truly is so he might do the same," Yang replied.

'So, they're trying to dissect me like an insect larvae; well isn't that just great, one more obstacle to add into the mix,' I thought to myself as there was a pause in the conversation, 'Also, Blake had a secret she didn't want to share either. Well, that doesn't really concern me but could be an interesting side project to figure out while here. But, I shouldn't pry, just take careful surveillance.' Then the conversation continued.

"Do you think we should go over there and talk to him about it?" Yang inquired her teammates.

"Well, like David said, you shouldn't pry. Because if you do he won't trust you making him less inclined to tell you," Blake responded. She could rad me like a book, and I only said one word to her when we met.

"Yeah I guess we should wait till tomorrow to ask him," Ruby said mildly disappointed.

"Humph, if he makes it past tomorrow," Weiss retorted.

Then ensued mindless bickering of why Weiss was always so bitter towards me. I couldn't pay attention to the conversation no matter how hard I concentrated. I nearly blacked out by concentrating so hard. 'Okay that's enough, I need to sleep. Tomorrow's a big day for me. A real landmark in my life to be proud of, for once. So, I unpacked my luggage and put everything away where I saw it would go. Then, after changing into a white t-shirt and white trousers, I crawled into the bed and promptly fell to sleep.

* * *

**A/N.**

**So, the first chapter of David at Beacon and I made it an extra long 3.4 thousand words. So there you go. Also, I've figured out his semblance which works perfectly with his character and back-story. Now, I apologize for the long break, I have had a nasty cough over the past few days, but it's fine now. Also, last week if classes for me and a lot of graduations for many others so good luck to all those dealing with classes and school, my sympathies. But, I will keep working on this but I would have really enjoyed having David in RWBY. Now if only I had five-thousand dollars and three other friends who would want to do it with me. For those who don't know, Rooster Teeth is making a movie and have an Indiegogo fundraiser up and running and one support pack was having a character, OC or character with your personality, in the show and making an appearance. So, until next time, I bid you all faarewell.**

**-TheInnerPeace signing off. (I am slightly miffed that David isn't in the show. He would go perfect with established canon. In my opinion.)**


	7. Chapter 7

**So, now onto Beacon chapters. This chapter may seem clustered, but I really had no idea what to do during this chapter. So, I put it all together. However, I have a new idea for a story, but it will not be started until after this story is over. I like to take things one step at a time. Also, I don't want to be flip-flopping between two stories. But, you can look out for that after this, however, for now you can read this chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter 7: New Dawn New Day**

I opened my eyes slowly and saw the light beaming into the room and wondered if I was dreaming. Then I rolled out of bed and slowly looked around. 'Nope, this is still my reality; nothing to complain about though. The first day did have a few minor surprises, to put it lightly, but now there was no more figuring out what was happening, just initiation. But, what is the initiation?' As I thought to myself my scroll began blinking on the desk. Picking it up and opening it showed a single message across the screen; it was from Ozpin. Meet at the cliff overlooking the emerald forest. 'Straightforward enough,' I told myself, 'then again, nothing is straightforward for me.'

I changed into my combat armor and grabbed my weapons, Rock and Sling. I also took the precaution of grabbing my new sniper rifle I had grabbed from my house from its carrying case; in case of emergencies obviously. Slung across my back it was almost half my height in length causing the butt of the rifle to stick out over my head. 'Well if anything tries to kill me, they'll be answering to this beast of a rifle.' I proceeded to grab as much ammunition as I could carry and walked out into the hallway. As I opened the door the one to my right did to, revealing Ruby exiting her room in her school uniform. "Hey Ruby," I said calmly.

"Good morning David. How are you?"

"I'm doing just fine, thank you. I'm about to head out to go do my initiation."

"Really, but initiation already occurred," she said, obviously bewildered.

"Yes Ruby," I said, semi-annoyed, "But you need to remember, I just got here. So that means I haven't done my initiation."

"Oh right, sorry," she seemed embarrassed.

"Ah, don't go worrying about it. You can't go about remembering everything," I told her reassuringly, "Well, I'm going to head out, bye." I had just turned my back when she seemed to instantly teleport in front of me. She scared me so much I nearly landed flat on my back. All I heard from her talking was something about my weapon, "What about my weapon?"

"What is your weapon, it looks so cool and interesting-," she didn't stop talking until I got up, brushed myself off and began put my finger to her lips. That seemed to shut her up, thank everything sane.

"If you must know, this was my dad's rifle that he would use to hunt Grimm. If you want to know the intricacies of it I'll tell you later. For now, I need to pass initiation. So, like I said before, goodbye," then I walked past her and proceeded across the school to the cliffs, wondering what I was getting myself into. 'Well, when the going gets tough, go harder.'

* * *

So, once I made it to the cliffs I found Ozpin and who I believed to be Glynda Goodwitch, since team RWBY had told me all the teacher's names. However I couldn't be sure, until Ozpin introduced her. 'Well that clears up my confusion.' So, I began wondering what I was doing looking over a forest from on top of a cliff face. "Good morning professor."

"Good morning David, I trust you slept well."

"Well, it was a nice sleep, but I can't help but wonder why I'm standing on a cliff face overlooking the emerald forest. So, I would appreciate an explanation of that."

"Yes, well, this is the start of your initiation," that peaked my interest, "today your skills will be put to test in the forest. However since all other students have done initiation, you will not be assigned to a team. However, you will still perform the same tasks as all other students, if you pass initiation. Now, on the north end of the forest you will find a temple; there you will find a relic. Retrieve it and return back to the top of the cliff face. You will meet opposition along the way; do not be afraid to destroy everything in your path or you will die. Now, do you have any questions?"

'Well, aren't you just an ominous guy,' However I did have one question so might as well ask. "Yes sir, I was wondering how you are going to put me into the emerald forest."

"Well, come forward and I will show."

He seemed trustworthy enough so I complied and stepped forward. My reward was an unsatisfying click where I had placed my feet. 'You are kidding me. Why in my bloodied name has he set up landmines? Is he trying to kill me?' Then I noticed the wide metal plate under my feet. 'Wait one second, weight detection, plate under my feet and no explanation of how I will be going in. There is no way, no single damn way he'd do that.' I looked at him, a state of bewilderment on my face. He returned my expression with a slight chuckle. "No, no no no, there is no way. You're joking with me, right?" He was obviously dead serious as he brought up a scroll and tapped in a series of commands. "NO, you can't you little-," that's as far as I got as I was suddenly flung through the air, flipping end over end. 'Oh dammit, this isn't good, not in the slightest.'

* * *

I had been flailing in the air panicking for a while so I began to bring my mind back to reality 'Okay, calm down, you've done stuff like this before. Get under control or it will all have been in vain.' So, through pure luck, I brought myself into an airplane like shape and began to fall after reaching my max height. 'First, that was completely uncalled for. Secondly, I am now falling at an alarming speed, so how do I land without turning into an ursa's dinner.' The pieces fell into place in my head and I came to one conclusion. I pulled my rifle off my back, added in a magazine of high-velocity rounds and began firing into my forward trajectory. After unloading the magazine into the ground I had slowed down enough that I could land without getting a serious injury. Upon impact, however, my body hurt like hell. No broken bones, just a solid constant pain coursing through my body. But, I brought myself to my feet, knowing full well that my landing strategy, if it could be called that, would surely attract attention from the forest's inhabitants. So I reloaded my rifle and began to run north; I wasn't sure why I was running north, but it was a better option than standing around.

* * *

After about twenty minutes of running, at least I thought that was the time change, I stopped and looked around. I don't know why, but I thought I heard footsteps, slow and deliberate. It sounded as if something was stalking its prey. Then, I realized that I could be that prey, waiting in the open for the attack. 'I can't just stand here and wait, that's suicide,' so, following my own advice, I clambered up the nearest tree.

I only had to wait seconds before a rustling sound began to fill the forest. Whatever it was, it was making a lot of noise. Usually a lot of noise meant something big. 'Well, let's pray that it isn't a death stalker,' I hoped that my luck had turned around. When the creature appeared under the tree I was in I thanked the stars that it wasn't a death stalker. Then, I began to curse my luck since it was an ursa major. 'Well, one shot is all it needs,' I told myself as I carefully pointed my rifle towards the beast. Once in my sights I made a small psst to grab its attention. It turned to me, with a stare of what I believed was confusion, and so I pulled the trigger saying, "Night night, teddy bear," as I did. I watched with mild satisfaction as its head lurched back and it fell to the ground. "Well, if a foe isn't expecting it, they can't plan for it." So, I climbed down from the tree and continued on my quest.

* * *

The scenery started to blend together as I ran through the forest, it seemed like an infinite loop cycling over and over, never letting me escape and find what I'm looking for. 'Jeez, this is the metaphor of my entire life.' Suddenly, a clearing appeared in front of me, a large stone temple area in the center. It was semi-circular in shape. As, I walked up to the temple I got a nagging feeling in my stomach. I snapped around, brought my rifle to bear, revealing a leaping beowolf. I peeked through the rifle's scope, made sure the target was in the crosshairs and pulled the trigger, there was barely any rifle kickback, but the monster's head exploded into a red mist. 'Serves you right, sneaking up on a guy as jumpy as me.' Then, everything went straight to hell.

A beowolf pack came right out from behind the tree line, meaning they were within meters of me. 'Crap, there's at least fifteen, time to bolt. But the temple's right there and that's the goal,' So, I pulled the bolt of my rifle and began laying down a wall of lead. Instincts kicked in and I began a cycle in my head; aim, fire, pull bolt, repeat. I managed to kill five, but then came the obvious problem, the magazine ran dry. Before my brain fully registered what was happening a beowolf had lunged at me and had me pinned to the ground. It pushed my shoulders to the ground, its claws piercing my armor plating and digging into my shoulders. My mind raced, I reached to my hip holster, put the muzzle of my revolver to the creature's head and fired a single round into the side of its head, under the armor of its skull. However, in anticipation, I had taken the liberty to load actual bullets into the weapon. But, as precaution they were special rounds, fire dust encased in the penetrator of the round, discharging and igniting on impact. So, after the bullet hit, the beasts face was being engulfed in flames; it frantically clawed at its head, trying to put out the flames. It eventually fell over and died; it smelled like burnt fur. However, I still had more of the creatures to deal with so I turned to face them, But they all were gone. "Yeah, who's the monster now you dirty beasts!?" I shouted at the non-existent Grimm. It was as if they were all a mirage, but my shoulders reminded me otherwise as blood seeped from the punctures in my armor. But there was no time to deal with those, I had my goal in my sights, so I walked to the temple.

It appeared to be an ancient temple as many of the stones were worn away from erosion. However, in the center of the temple stood a pedestal with an intricately designed black pawn chess piece. 'Wow, couldn't be any more clichéd if you tried.' So, I grabbed it, stuffed it in my pocket for safe keeping and began to head back to the cliff face.

* * *

As I ran through the forest, I began becoming curious of what was happening, 'There is very little Grimm activity, especially for this forest is worrisome, especially my encounter with the beowolves. Why had they ran? They would've been able to take me, so why not finish me? Was I lucky, or was there something else in the forest?' I had made it to the cliffs, now all that needed to be done was to walk up to the top. But life had other plans, as I heard rustling grass come from behind me. It kept growing in sound, as if something was moving faster and faster. Then, everything fell silent as night. I spun around, whipping out my revolvers and began to fire into the trees with fire dust. Out of pure luck a bullet struck something and caught fire to it. So, now I knew what my assailant was; that in and of itself turned into a problem as a king taijitu. "Oh, well ain't that just rich," I said out of pure annoyance. My luck was just not letting me have good fortune.

But, in my distracted state, the black head snapped its jaws at my head. I narrowly escaped, but was led into a deadly strike from the other head. It clasped its jaw around my torso, its teeth sinking into my side like a red hot knife. "Gaah! No you don't!" I shouted at it as I unhooked my rifle from my back. I pulled up and slammed the muzzle of the gun into the creature's eye socket. It hissed in pain, but wouldn't let go. So, to solve the problem I fired high-calibre rounds, one after the other, straight through its head. It had the surprising effect of blowing a hole in the opposite side of the head. The creature turned limp, but didn't let me go, even in death. 'Damn, the other one'll get me,' sure enough it did strike; it aimed right for my head, probably trying to rip it clean off. But I had other plans. Quick as a bullet I switched magazines, but I had no idea what ammo I would fire. 'Let's hope this works,' I thought, pulling the trigger and wishing for good luck. Good luck delivered, as the round flew straight into its mouth, impacted and exploded in a vibrant fireball, exploding the creature's head in the process. 'Well, that was effective, now to make my exit,' I pondered as I pried open the creature's jaw. The pain was excruciating as I tore its jaw open, the teeth cutting through my flesh. Once opened, the teeth were a deep crimson and blood poured from my side, 'Well that'll take a while to heal.' As I walked to the cliff my vision started to blur, then it became focused again and cycled between blurred and clear. 'No, poison... this isn't happening. I will not succumb. I am stronger than it. Just need to push forward.' Then my thoughts were cut off as I saw a woman in a black cloak appear in front of me. "No, no you can't be here, it's impossible." It was true as the woman was my mother.

Her pale blue eyes stared into mine, a calm demeanour to them, her silvery hair flowed with the wind so elegantly, "David I'm so glad to see you. But, you look unwell. Come here and it will be all better."

"No," I told her in a delusional state , " that's impossible, your dead. You can't be here now, you can't."

"Yes well, if you come to me, all will be right. Come, reach for my hand and all your struggles will seep away."

"No, that's not what you would say," I accused the person, "You never taught me to be a coward, to back down when things got tough. You're a lair, an imposter; nothing more than a figment of reality. I will not give in." With those words I passed through the image and scaled up the cliff. It was strenuous work, but I managed to climb to the top. There on the top stood Ozpin, but Goodwitch was nowhere in sight. So, I crawled up to my feet, staggered towards him while holding my bloodied side and handed him the chess piece. "You're pawns work, is complete," I said, wincing midway through. He looked at me with a mixed expression, it was between shock, respect and what I imagined was intrigue. He reached for it, grabbed it from my hand and put it into his jacket pocket. Satisfied with my own work, I felt a sense of relief, then fell over and became unconscious. My last sight was Ozpin's shoes going across my vision. 'Always below the feet of other. Always...' Then, never-ending darkness.

* * *

**Yeah, not the best chapter, but this was me scraping together a chapter. But, now onto the actual meat of this tale of heroes and villains. Now things will become clear. Who is David and what's his goals? Why is he so spiteful towards his past? But most of all, what shenanigans can be had with team RWBY? We will push onwards, into the future and into the summer months. Always remember, do what you enjoy doing and not what others tell you to do; always keep an open mind to others and always stay true to you.**

**-TheInnerPeace singing off (Yay, delayed celebration of over five hundred views. Let's make it a thousand, shall we)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Truths Revealed**

All around was a sea of darkness, engulfing and never-ending. I just seemed to float in it, neither here nor there. It was serene and peaceful at first, then the sea began to churn and create waves. The waves were small at first, then they became bigger and more frequent. Eventually it was a raging storm, a constant pounding of water that I couldn't see. It was like an invisible wall was smashing into me from every direction. The chaos was consuming me, dragging me deeper and deeper until I felt powerless against everything that was happening. Just when I felt like I was completely defeated, a light appeared in the distance of the darkness. Inside was four silhouettes plastered against the light. I struggled to free myself from the darkness, I shouted at the people to wait for me, but the surrounding darkness clung to me like it was welded to me. The light began to fade, but the silhouettes stayed. I broke from the clutches of the wretched blackness and ran forward to the shadowed people. Suddenly the darkness was banished by a blinding light. I fought to see through it and found that I was alone. However, despite the loneliness, I felt at peace, like all of my commitments had been resolved and I was free to do what I wanted. Then, the light cleared and I found myself coming back to reality.

* * *

"Do you think he'll ever wake up?"

"Don't worry Ruby, he's a fighter and you know it. He'll just keep fighting."

"But what if it's not enough Yang? What if no matter how hard he fights he can't win? I don't want to lose a friend."

My vision cleared slowly, revealing a room full of monitors and other equipment. It was clear that I was in some sort of medical area due to the fact that I could see my blood pressure, beats per minute and other vital signs displayed on the equipment. I looked around and saw Ruby and Yang standing near the door in front of the bed that I laid in. They both had worried expressions across their faces. 'I would too if my friend had their side ripped into by a king taijitu.' But, to resolve their worrying, I spoke up to announce my arrival to reality, "Well, that's not happening today, not by a long shot." They both looked at me with sighs of relief; I'm pretty sure they were happy to see me alive.

"We were worried that you wouldn't make it," Yang told me, "The doctors said it would be a miracle if you were to survive."

"Well, I'm not going to give up so quickly. If I'm going down I'm going down with a fight."

"Yeah, that' apparent," Yang said jokingly, "You could've been a lot worse with that hole in your side."

Just to see for myself I sat up and looked on my left side to check the damage. It did look bad, an indent in my left hip showing where the teeth had sunk through. It was also ringed by black marks, obviously a side effect from the poison, but it would go away eventually. "Well, that's not too bad, considering all that had happened."

"Ozpin was really impressed," Ruby interjected, "he said he watched the whole thing. He told us how you were caught in its jaws but you still fought back without giving in. He also said he thought he saw you hallucinating when you were walking back to the cliff."

"Yeah, the poison is not a fun thing to experience. I'm lucky I didn't black out sooner, all things considered."

"Well, the doctors say that you can be out by tonight and will be able to go to classes tomorrow," Yang told me bringing a rain onto my parade.

"Yang, why did you have to tell me? I could've feigned ignorance and said I didn't know." They both laughed at the joke, which came as a surprise as I hadn't made jokes in a long time. It came with general happiness, to them and to me. It felt good to be with them. 'They're so kind for only knowing me for a few days.'

"Well, we had better leave. David, when you're ready the doctors said you could leave." I nodded in acknowledgement. They said their goodbyes and left me in the bed. But rather than feeling lonely I felt happy. They cared for me and my well being. They were genuine friends, as far as I could tell. But, friends none the less.

After several minutes of lying in the bed I got out and stood up. Instantly I felt the pain in my side; it wasn't severe, but it was a constant reminder of what had happened. But, like all the other wounds, it showed my determination to not back down. So, I walked forward down the halls of the medical area and came to one conclusion. 'I'm finally somewhere that I belong. I can now be someone who matters to others, be helpful to others and support those who need the help. Now, I can be useful. Before this I was useful to others, but I wasn't doing it for my own reasons. I was so blinded with sorrow and couldn't think of anything else. How much of an idiot was I, thinking that I was making a difference. I was hurting others' lives, dragging them down into the same sorrow as myself. Now, I'll have to face someone I could've destroyed. But she doesn't know, she doesn't need to know what happened then.'

* * *

It was dark and stormy, the moon was blocked out by the clouds which lead to a cloak of darkness over the estate. There were a few unlucky souls who had to patrol the area, but most were under the protection of overhead cover to block the rain. The majority of the area was covered with security cameras. It seemed simple enough, sneak in undetected, put the barrel of my gun to the man's forehead and pull the trigger. Then, with a little help from my partner, escape the area. But, a plan can't foresee the future; it can just make contingency plans for when it does. That's exactly what happened, however, no one thinks of a contingency for those original plans. That night everything became clear, my sense of truth crumbled and I had nothing to look for. That's what led me here. But, my past is my past and I can't just keep turning my back to it. Eventually I'll have to face it and when that happens I won't know what to do. But, whatever happens, I'll face it head-on.

* * *

I was walking through the courtyard, letting the pain in my side seep out of my system when I felt something off. 'Oh for dust's sake, how come every five seconds something else is following me,' I found myself getting rather annoyed at all this unwanted attention. There was the sound of light footsteps from behind, however they weren't very quiet in my head. I turned around to see the stocky body of a certain Cardin Winchester. Sighing I began to talk to my follower, "You do know that you aren't very stealthy do you?"

He looked at me bewildered, "How did you -"

"Know you were behind me? It honestly isn't that difficult for me. I have a certain skill set for it. So, why were you trying to sneak up behind me?"

"I don't know who you are but here's the thing. I'm the kind of guy you don't want to get mad. And you want to know something?"

"Why yes I would; enlighten me with whatever this conversation is about."

"I'm the kind of guy you don't want to get mad."

With that he went to grab my throat. What he wasn't expecting was for me to stop it; not just attempt to stop his attack, but completely stop his hand midway. "Now, I have something to tell you, Cardin," his expression went from smug to fearful surprise, "I'm the kind of guy who you don't want to be mad at," I said with little emotion in my voice. I twisted his hand to the breaking point; not completely breaking it, but just enough so that he winced in pain. "Because if you are stupid enough to try to take me on, I promise you that I will break every bone in your body. Then, as you beg for death to come, I'll deliver it, but it will be painful beyond your imagination." Then, I released his hand, delivered a solid punch to the gut and walked away.

As I walked from him he managed to sputter out, "You're a lunatic. You're crazy."

"You haven't even seen the worst of me. Now, if you tell anyone about this, I will keep my promise." So, with that I left him to pick himself back up. 'None of them have been through what I have, none of them will ever understand.'

* * *

I made it back to my dorm without another incident. Once I closed the door I sat on my bed and looked back at what I had just done. 'Why did I act that way? That is no longer me, I left all that behind. Can I escape from my past self when it still lingers inside me? I won't act that way again, I have too much at stake now. I have a future and I can't let that be thrown away, not now. Tomorrow I start on my new life and I can't let this linger inside me forever. This is so complicated, why can't it all just be put in the past? I still have a string to my past that needs to be cut, one way or another. I just hope it can be cut before everything goes wrong. I just need to take this one step at a time and the first step is figuring out this new school tomorrow. So, I should get some rest.'

I got up and reached for my nightwear. I took off my combat vest and was about to put on my shirt when I heard the door to my dorm open behind me. Then came a familiar voice, "Hey David, I just came to see how -" then the voice trailed off. I knew exactly why and I cursed myself for the timing.

I tuned to see Yang, standing in the doorway, a look of shock and horror across her face. 'Well, I can't say I blame her, I would be shocked too.' So I said to her, "If you're going to ask, close the door first." She looked at me, realized what I was saying and closed the door. I then sat on my bed and beckoned her to sit beside me. She sat beside me with a face of worry and I could tell that she was trying to think what to ask, so I helped her, "You must be wondering how all of that got there. Why my back is criss-crossed with various scratches, cuts, burn marks and other various injuries. Well, that shows my entire past in a complete fashion. Everything on there is exactly why I don't want to talk about my past. Well, that is all behind me, that is not who I am anymore. So if that explains everything you can leave. But if there is anything else you want to ask I'll answer it as best I can."

After a while she finally asked, "How come you don't want to talk about your past?"

Now that was a difficult question, but I knew I could trust her. So I answered openly, "Because in my past I was a monster. I had no idea why I did what I did, but now I don't want to be that any more. I don't want to be looked upon as a monster, as a psychopath who doesn't know what the hell he's doing or why he does it. I ruined other's lives because my life was in shambles. Now I have to face what I've done and I don't want others to be collateral damage in it. So, promise me you won't tell anyone else."

"Okay, but whatever you go through, we'll be right beside you to face it."

Somehow, that brought me great comfort in knowing that I wasn't alone in this. But I wouldn't let them be hurt because of me. So I told her, "Thanks, now it's time for us to get ready for tomorrow. So, I'll see you then." With that, she got up and walked out of my room. I finished getting ready for bed and then began to focus. It was difficult with the new wound in my side, but I pushed through it and managed to listen in to team RWBY's dorm room.

"He said he was fine," Yang' voice suddenly echoed in my head.

"What aren't you telling us, you seem so secretive," Weiss said accusingly. 'Wow, she really doesn't trust me.'

"If she says that's all he said, then let's leave it at that," Blake said, breaking up the oncoming argument, "He wouldn't want us talking behind his back" Always the logical thinker, she probably had the same thing with her own past. No other person would know that. But, that means she must know why I don't want to talk about my past.

But, after that they all stopped their conversation and went to sleep. After some time I did the same thing, because tomorrow I knew would be an important day as my new life would begin. With that I sunk into sleep.

* * *

**Now the story really begins to unfold. I hope all of you are enjoying what you are doing. Also, Volume 2 is one month away and continues to approach us. That is exciting because it will give more character exposition and information. That will give writers like you or myself more to work with and allow us to make better stories. So, until next time, have fun.**

**-TheInnerPeace signing off (I've recently started watching anime. It's a really good form of media because there's so many different ones for every person's preference.)**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Slow Days**

I opened my eyes and felt something was wrong, like somebody was watching me from the shadows. I slowly got out of bed and began about my daily routine. I grabbed my school uniform and began to dress myself. As I put on my tie I spoke into the room, "Okay, if you're here to kill me, don't draw it out." To my surprise there was no reply. I began to search the room, but my search yielded no results. I checked every space of my room but found nothing, no assailant, no traps, absolutely nothing. I was about to leave when I noticed that a note had been left on the door. The hand writing was perfect and cohesive. But the words meanings were dark and sinister. Across the sheet read the letters,  
'You left me for dead that night. Now I'm back to return the favor. Watch your back and prepare for your nightmares to be real.

-Gohl'

When I finished the note I looked around in a circle. 'No, that is impossible, he couldn't have survived, I made sure of that. How could he have found me?' The thoughts raced through my head. Gohl, the ticking time bomb, big, short-tempered and loud mouthed. He was once a friend and now my friend was trying to murder me, and for what? Some personal vendetta; no, it's clear he couldn't have survived unless he had received help. Who would've dragged his corpse out of there just so they could set him loose on me? It was clear who was behind this scheme, but the why stumped me? Why drag him out and bring him back to kill me. I knew what Gohl was capable of, but that didn't mean I was going to roll over and die. 'If he wants to kill me he can try but this time I'll make sure I finish the job.' Then I looked down at the alarm clock that rested near my bed; the time read 8:50. My first class was at 9:00. After regaining myself I pushed open my door and sprinted down to my first class, Grimm studies. 'That it will be,' I thought as I ran down the stairs.

* * *

With minutes to spare I made my way into the class. I wasn't the last person into the class, but most certainly wasn't the first. I made my way to the second row of seats and took my spot. Conveniently enough I sat in front of Ruby and her team. After they took their seats they began to talk amongst themselves, but Yang turned around and looked at me with an expression of worry. She knew about my past and now she felt compelled to help me, which was a problem. Firstly, if they knew about my true past then there would be no turning back. In fact there wouldn't be anything to go back to as the me they know now would no longer be considered trustworthy. Secondly, they would be dragged into my problem meaning they could be considered as a way to get to me, which means Gohl would be after them like rapier wasps on a jar of Forever Fall sap.

While I was sifting through my thoughts the professor, I believed his name was Peter Port if my memory was right, walked in and began to teach today's lessons and then everything just dragged along. Most students weren't even paying the slightest bit of attention to the lesson, most likely dreaming of whatever was on their mind. I was doing the same, not because the lesson didn't interest me, but because there was more pressing matters on my mind. 'What am I going to do about Gohl? He is obviously here at the school, so how am I supposed to combat that? He could be watching me right now, plotting about how violently he could tear me apart. But if he puts anyone else in danger to get at me, then he's a dead man one way or another.' While I was thinking the professor was talking about a childhood story about him capturing a beowolf using only his hands and a length of rope. 'Seems unlikely. But who am I to judge; Gohl survived so pretty much anything can happen now.' The story dragged out and eventually stopped, where he decided to continue onto the lesson that was going on before he started the story. 'Today is just going to be a drag. This is probably the closest I'll be to hell. Well, unless you count being with Gohl,' despite the dark truth my joke had, I still laughed. I just needed to stay through this class because the rest of the classes couldn't be as boring as this class.

* * *

The next class wasn't boring, in a way. I already knew what was being talked about in that class, so I kept vague level of interest in the topic. After that was the lunch break; that didn't really matter to me so much, but I decided I had to eat something so I grabbed a tray of food and began looking for a spot to sit down. Unfortunately I couldn't seem to find a spot that I liked. However, to my surprise, Ruby saw me and ushered me to sit at their table. With no better idea in mind I decided to sit down at the vacant spot at the end of the table beside Yang. At the table there was team RWBY, obviously, but opposite of them was another team. Amongst them I saw Jaune but the rest I didn't know. After some time I managed to ask, "Would anyone care to make introductions or shall I?"

After realizing my question Ruby swallowed her mouthful and began, "Right, David this is team JNPR. There's Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora and Ren."

Now with some knowledge I began a conversation, "Well, it's pleased to meet you all. But you didn't have to introduce me to Jaune."

At that Jaune looked up from his plate and gave me a worried look, "Wait, where did we meet before?"

"From my perspective you appeared to be having a little problem, which I helped solve."

After a few seconds Jaune realized what I was talking about, "You were the guy who beat up Cardin!"

At that everyone's eyes turned to me, "Now we have a proper introduction to each other. Also, you're welcome for before." But no one stopped staring so my guess was they wanted some explanation, "Okay, after I landed and met up with Ruby, Ozpin took me to his office to talk to me; it's a nice office. Anyway, while we were heading to the office I saw Jaune and Cardin dueling so I went to give Jaune some advice. Then I felt like facing Cardin and a little while later I'm back walking to Ozpin's office while everyone is staring at me in a state of shock," after that everyone's faces lit up. "It was sort of like the expressions you're giving me."

After a while Nora chimed in, "How bad was it?"

"What do you mean?" I was genuinely puzzled by the question as I had given a good explanation of the events.

"How bad was it for Cardin?"

"Well, he'll still walk," I heard a slight whimper escape Nora's lips. 'Okay either there's something I don't know about Cardin and them or she's lost her mental sanity.' That worried me slightly as the last mentally unstable person I knew is now after my head. But that didn't matter now; I just have to prepare for that eventuality.

* * *

The rest of the classes were more appealing to my pace of learning. The first after lunch was with Professor Oobleck. He has a very unique personality and by unique I mean he made it difficult for me to pay attention. But that made it more interesting, learning about human faunus treaties and agreements, which to most would seem dull. To me it was interesting, because even though we are a very similar people there is extreme tension because of a few differences. To me that is astounding as I care not whether someone is a human or a faunas. I just care about whether someone wants to be a jerk to me or if they want me dead. That's what matters, not hating someone because they may seem bad, but if they're someone you just can't stand. However next class was very interesting.

It started out simple enough, taking a seat in class. However, the class wasn't any normal class, as it was Ms. Goodwitch's combat training class. 'Perfect, just what I'm good at.' The class went on for a short time as Goodwitch talked about basic combat techniques. Then everything just made a sharp left turn, "Now, let us have a short match. David Smith," at my name I froze, "you shall have a match against Miss Yang Xiao Long."

My heart stopped and I felt my blood drain from me. A wave of silence fell over the class, 'Why do they have to do that?' Then I looked over my left shoulder to see Yang's eyes wide and a smug grin across her face. 'Well, hopefully I last long enough to get a few hits in.' I knew her reputation and those who told me it were either bystanders or could barely walk straight. This wasn't going to be pretty for me. But she didn't know me, my combat style, my semblance or anything about my past self. If given the chance and if I was lost in the battle she wouldn't be doing so hot anymore. 'But it won't come to that, I won't let it. It'll be a simple fight or if it gets complicated I'll end it.' So when we got to the arena she activated her weapon, the deadly Ember Celica. I readied my weapons, filled them with non-lethal pellets, concentrated on my opponent and waited for the match to begin.

* * *

**So I leave you off with that, now I would like to apologize for the long delay of this; one week to be exact. I had a struggle trying to figure out how to write this chapter, but after an event that will happen the story will really pick up, in story, delivery and quality because at that point everything is already planned out. These chapters are like making wood furnishings you find an idea and get a plan of what it will be. Then you start the process of making it, during this phase you might run into complications and problems but eventually it's done. Then you sand out the rough edges and you have the finished product. ****For those who keep up with this story and follow it, thank you. You're support keeps me doing this and hopefully when this story ends (yes, like all things there must be an end) you'll be waiting to see what comes out next from me. ****So, in the next chapter there will be action, plot development and other things! So, keep reading on to see where David's story goes from here, hopefully you will be faced with shock as the tale unfolds. Fun fact I nearly made the stupid mistake of calling Gohl Arkos. After I realized what nearly happened I nearly shed a tear due to so much laughter. This could've been a very strange story.**

**-TheInnerPeace signing off ("Gah, these confounded cliffhangers," shouts the reader. Trust me, there will be more.)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: A Rude Awakening**

All I could do was breathe and wait for the battle to begin. I glanced over at the audience where everyone was staring intently at the both of us. A few were talking, probably making deals to see who would win or how long it would take for me to get my ass kicked. But I wasn't about to go down without a fight. I decided to pass the time by stirring up the tension, "Hey Yang," she broke out of her contemplative state, "I don't want this to be too boring."

I swore her eyes flared red for a second, "Don't worry, if we're lucky it'll be interesting for the both of us."

Then the buzzer sounded and the fight began. She charged me quickly, almost catching me off guard. She swung a sharp right straight for my core. Barely missing I went in for a strike to her legs but she stepped back before I got close. 'Well, this'll be interesting.' I went for a charging sweep but she ducked under it and gave me an uppercut to the chest. The wind was knocked from my lungs but I fell flat to the ground before her other fist could connect. I swept my legs under hers, knocking her onto her side. Backing off to catch my breath I knew I would need more to beat her, but those fists hit pretty hard. So I couldn't beat her in raw power so I would need to beat her in a different category.

After a short pause she charged again, but instead of a straight on attack she tried to take me off-balance. It turned into a ballet of punches and dodges as we tried to outmanoeuvre one another to get in a strike. She found an opening and went for a heavy punch, but I was one step ahead because it wasn't an opening, it was a trap. She swung and missed me, her strike swung wide and I went to strike her in the back with both weapons. She ducked and came up behind up behind me before I could react. She, punched and I heard the crack of her weapon, as well as that of my back. I flew forward and landed sprawled on the other side of the battle arena. 'Come on, pick yourself up! You can't just give up!' I shouted at myself. I wasn't just going to submit defeat; I just needed to go harder. So, I pulled myself up, even though my back was burning with pain. I turned to Yang to see her shocked that I got up. "You'll need to do better than that if you wanna kill me!"

I charged her, putting all my strength into the attack. Time seemed to slow down as I pushed on. I brought my strike down and it hit home, smashing into her side. She staggered to the side, but I didn't hold back, I just kept swinging. Each strike I pushed myself to go faster, hit harder and hit key points. Everything shut down, all I could think was beating her to survive. It became automated, strike after strike connected, slamming into her sides, arms, legs, head, anywhere that seemed to be a weak point. She staggered and collapsed and turned to face me. I switched Sling into a revolver and took to pointing it at her head. I was about to pull the trigger until I looked into her eyes. All I saw was defeat and terror in her purple eyes. Then I froze, something I normally wouldn't do. A part of me was shouting in my skull, saying "Do it, end this." But the other part of me took in the damage caused. Her normally cheerful self was now in pure terror, her figure bruised and bloodied. It was an all too familiar scene I had faced every day and it was the life that I had left. Everything clicked back in my head and my hand was shaking. I dropped my weapon, knelt down and picked her up, resting her on my shoulder. I looked out over the spectators and their faces were all lit up in shock, especially those of team RWBY. I looked away and helped Yang down the stage. 'They must all think I'm a maniac, a psycho. Well that's their thoughts, but they're probably right.'

Then as we walked down the stage Yang asked in a pained voice, "Can I ask one question? Why did you not shoot?"

In a solemn tone I answered, "Because you all are the reason I'm fighting. And if you aren't there why is there a reason to fight?"

* * *

I convinced Goodwitch to let me take Yang to the medical area. Once there they took her in without question and began to examine the injuries. I could only sit and pray that it wasn't serious, because if it was I would never forgive myself.

Suddenly the door burst open and Yang's team-mates came into the room with Weiss at the helm. I just sat in a chair, staring at my feet, contemplating what I had just done. But, my contemplation had to be cut short, because Weiss wasn't here for idle conversation.

As I stood up she was already in my face being her angry self, "What was that back there?"

Maintaining a level head I tried to explain the situation, "Okay Weiss, I know that you are worried-"

"I am beyond worried! You nearly killed one of my team-mates, one of my friends; you put a gun to her head. So whatever explanations you have, I don't want to hear it."

'Why's she shouting at me without knowing any facts? If she could calm down I could explain myself.'

While I was thinking, Weiss kept ranting until she noticed my absent-mindedness, "Are you even paying attention to me? I asked for an explanation of what happened back there."

I couldn't hold back any more, so I just snapped, "Look Weiss, I don't know what you might think of me after that but do you know what I think of you? From what I've seen, I think you are a judging, self-centered, asinine and untrusting individual. But I feel you could be better than that. Now, what you saw back there is the reason I am here; that was me, that is what I used to be. That is what I fear the most, because I don't want to be that any more. So, if that provides explanation for what happened back there, I'm leaving." Taking on a softer tone I said, "The doctors don't see any real injuries, just bruises for the most part. I hope we can still be friends." And with that I left them there, Weiss awestruck with Blake and Ruby surprised at my backlash towards the heiress.

* * *

I laid on my bed, contemplating my previous actions, 'Everything is falling apart and it's only the first day. What a lousy beginning to a fresh start. I've already pissed off many people, I have a psychopath trying to tear my head off and now the only friends I had will now most likely avoid me like the plague.' "Why does everything go bad for me?"

Then the door slowly opened to reveal Yang, still slightly bruised but mostly fine, "Well, I don't know everything about you, but not all of it must go bad."

"Humph, you don't know the half of it. But, it is good to see that you're fine."

"Well, you did do a number on me, but it wasn't too bad. So what's on your mind?"

"Well, apart from me nearly beating you to nothing and Weiss being generally pissed off towards me, plenty of things. Mostly stuff about my past and we both know how I am about talking about that. It just feels like the whole world is against me."

"Well, I wouldn't say that the whole world is against you…"

"Oh really, well let me tell you something. The people who I thought I could trust in my past are now trying to kill me, Weiss isn't too keen on helping me out and your sister probably is doubting whether she really knows me. So, now you see why I think that the whole world is against me."

"Well, there must be someone who could help you; what about your parents?" That was a particularly rough spot so I just bowed my head at my feet and sat there staring at them playing back the images in my head. Yang noticed quickly and began scratching her head, "Umm, sorry about that, I don't mean to sound like that."

"No no, don't worry, it's partly my fault. I just can't help but feel that I'm accountable for it."

"How could you be held responsible for your parents' deaths?"

"Well, it's a long story…" so I told her about my parents leaving, them not returning and Ozpin coming to my door.

I told her about how I planned on taking out the beowolves that killed them, "Wow, that seems really risky."

"Yeah, I must not have been thinking straight. But, this is where I start to think it was my fault." She stopped herself and began listening more intently, "So, I went off to find them and that's exactly what I did. But, there were more than I had expected. There was roughly forty wolves and me being the inexperienced fighter I was, I panicked. I hit a few, but they were on me in seconds. They ripped and tore at my skin. But, for some odd reason, they left me alive by a thread and dragged me away, but at that point I had passed out."

"That must've been horrible," she was already shocked at my ordeal.

"It got worse. I woke up in a cave, tired and pained. Around me were others who had fought them and most were decaying corpses. However, two of them were still alive and breathing; those two alive were my parents. I reached for them, tried to grab their attention but they didn't respond. They just looked so tired, like they didn't want any more suffering, any more pain in their lives; they had given up hope, now they just wanted it to end. So, a hungry looking monster walks in the room and picks up my mother's body. While it was holding her she looks at me right in the eyes and tells me, 'David all will be all right soon.' Then, it ate her." The scene replayed in my mind, the crunch, the spray of red across the creature's mouth and my father's cry of sorrow that pierced the air; it all brought me to tears.

As I sobbed through my hands Yang put a reassuring hand on my shoulder, "Don't be so hard on yourself, there was nothing you could've done."

"Yes I could've! I had my rifle still in my hands, I could've killed it before it ate my mother in front of me. But there was no way to save my father. He… he was broken after that. His spirit had been broken and so the only thing he looked for was death. He looked at me and told me, 'Never be like me; never give up.' With those final words, he pulled out a pistol, shoved it onto the side of his head and ended it all. Both my parents killed in front of me; both deaths I could've stopped. I blamed it all on me, but I had a fire inside me I couldn't calm. The beowolf turned to me and started to come towards me. I was now blinded by rage so I did the only thing I could. I climbed to my feet, ran towards the creature and blew its head off. Then I ran through the cave killing all of them in any way I could. Once out, I was out of energy and collapsed. So that's why I blame myself for their deaths."

Even though she was awestruck at the hardship I had faced, she still kept a reassuring tone, "David, I know that this was hard to remember but you can't keep this grudge with you. There are some things that you just need to let go."

"I guess you're right, I can't change what's already happened. I can just use it to help guide me," turning to her I let a smile creep across my grim face, "Thanks for helping me."

"Hey, what is a friend if they aren't there for you in a time of need?" Then she walked out the door, leaving me to my drowsy self.

'There is nothing I could've done back then, but now I can make those differences. I just hope they aren't for the wrong reasons.'

* * *

**Yes, a new chapter is released and yes I have some explaining to do. I have been flaked with other work, summer school to be exact, but soon I'll be able to do more. So, thank you all for reading my story, it is really appreciated. The support is always appreciated.**

**-TheInnerPeace singing out (why must there be so many things hindering me from this).**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 10: A Fragile Truth…**

The next few days went by as one would expect them to; many people gave me sideways glances, some bitter stares, but no one really pestered me about. Well, except for teams RWBY and JNPR but it was only general concern for me. They knew something was wrong about me, but they didn't ask questions they knew I wouldn't answer. That helped as I had enough stuff on my mind; Gohl specifically was the major problem. He had left the note for me, but I couldn't tell when he was going to strike or when he would. But knowing him he would seek absolute revenge. He wouldn't just kill me that would be too simple for him. No, he would tear me apart, my body and my mind. He was cynical that way. But until that day came I would be waiting to strike back and fight back.

* * *

It was early evening on Friday and there wasn't anything to do so I just laid on my bed, staring at the ceiling letting thoughts run through my head. 'Is there any way to escape from myself? Of course not, that part of me I can't possibly get rid of. But I can try to fix the damage I've already done before it gets out of control. But, is there a realistic way to fix this. There are very few options for fixing what I've done and none of them are particularly appealing. To what lengths will I go to fix what I've done? Also, what point will be too much, at what point will I just break, like dad? He had lost everything, the only thing that was left was a slow agonizing death or a life of misery. There was no going back then and there's no going back now, my carefree life of adolescent bliss was ripped from me back then. I just hope no one else has to face that sudden change like I had to.'

Submerged in my thoughts I barely noticed when Ruby opened the door, "How are you doing?"

Giving off a loud sigh I replied, "As good as I possibly could, considering the circumstances."

"Look, what happened with Yang is behind us, we don't hold anything against you."

"It's not just that," I said, getting up off of my bed, "it's everything that I've been dealing with. There's so much crazy shit happening that I just can't escape from. I would like someone to talk to but there's no one I can do that with. I've done so much wrong in my life that no matter what I would be considered nothing more than a psychotic, even if I consoled it with you. It's just that I'm trying to move forward in my life, but there's always my past, holding me back because I've done wrong. There's no escape from it, all I can do is delay the inevitable for as long as I can."

Confused, Ruby continued, "Okay, well I was going to ask if you wanted to join the rest of us, but you have more important things on your mind."

She started to close the door, but I got up and stopped her before it shut, "No, that sounds good. It helps really, having people like you there to help me. You're just so trusting and so kind, even after what you've seen of me."

* * *

The five of us walked down the sidewalks of Vale, just simply being friends, for the most part. Everyone was their usual self except Weiss. She seemed tense around me, but I really couldn't blame her. She had already been weary of me, but now she was more so concerned about what I would do next. But everything else was going perfectly well.

We were walking down the street when I got a feeling of dread in my mind. I stopped in my tracks and looked around me. Nothing out of the usual, various people walking up and down the street, others in shops examining various goods. The others had gotten a little ways away until they noticed I had stopped. They came back with looks of confusion on their faces.

"Is everything okay back here?" Yang asked, obviously concerned about me.

"Huh, yeah, just got a little distracted," I lied through my teeth. 'What could make my semblance go off so strongly at a time like this?'

Obviously not believing me Yang persisted, "Well I don't think that's what happened? If you have something on your mind, you can tell us."

"It's just that sometimes I get these feelings, you know? Feelings that something's going to happen, something bad."

"You're just too tense," Ruby chimed in, "You need to remember that we're here right next to you. If something does go wrong we'll be right beside you, no matter what."

"You know, it's good to have friends like you, friends who'll stand beside me when I most need help."

Suddenly an immense explosion emerged from the dust shop a block away from where we were standing, nearly demolishing the entire store and surrounding buildings. Rubble flew from the explosion and pedestrians began to panic and scatter from the scene. "Speaking of trouble…" Yang jibed.

"We'd better check to see if we can help," I said as I began to run towards the wrecked shop. The rest of them began to follow shortly afterwards. 'That was what I had been alerted by, but what made it feel so bad? What my semblance trying to tell me? What could've happened in the explosion?'

Once I was in the wreckage trying to help people out I began to see what had happened. The shop was completely trashed, display cases burst open and scorch marks were scourged into the walls. The people in the explosion were horribly bruised and had many broken bones, however other than the store clerk they all wore similar uniforms. They wore uniforms I had seen before, gray masks covered all of their face except their mouths and on the back of each one was a picture of a red wolf face with claw marks running down it. 'Where have I seen these before?'

As the others approached from behind Blake was quick to answer my question, "White Fang! What are they doing here?"

"They must've been trying to rob the store when something went wrong and the dust crystals ignited," I analyzed as I checked around to see if anyone else was injured. "But why did they ignite is the real question?"

From behind some fallen shelves came a series of coughs and muttering, "Why did I agree to work with those animals? No restraint, no common sense. If you shoot a burn crystal it will explode, that's what I was telling him. But no, he had to see for himself, the idiot."

After a few more coughs the voice had a face to its name and as I looked at it I knew why my heart had been filled with dread. But now I was filling up with rage. The white suit plastered with dirt and the black bowler hat were unmistakable. "Roman Torchwick," I fumed through gritted teeth.

"You!" team RWBY shouted towards him.

Clearing out his throat he looked at them, cocky as ever, "Oh hello Red. Sorry about the mess, one of those idiots didn't mean to do it but he was a bit tense.

"What are you doing here?" I shouted from behind the others. I pushed myself forwards, pointing my revolver at him.

"Davey, what a surprise seeing you here," he said in an eerily calm voice.

"Shut up. You aren't going anywhere so I would suggest that you stop your mouth from running before I have a reason to really hurt you."

Blinded by instinct I forgot that Ruby and her team were behind me listening to this, "David, what is he talking about?"

In a mocking tone Roman kept talking, "Oh, did he not tell you Red? Isn't that a real shame? Seems you can't trust anyone now."

"What are you talking about?" Weiss shouted, most likely paranoid.

"I'm talking about David's past, the one he won't tell you about. And why is that David, is it because of regret, shame, fear of rejection."

"Shut up or I will bury you so far down that you'll be beyond hell!"

"Oh please, you have nothing to threaten me with. No one will trust you especially after you tried to kill her father," he said pointing a finger at Weiss. With that, my entire world that I was trying to rebuild fell apart.

* * *

**And so the plot unfolds. Sorry for the late and short chapter, Summer Schooling had me wrapped up so I had little time to work on this, but now it is out. So, this series is going quite good for me. You all are really nice towards me in this. But I can't wait for Volume 2 to be released. Unfortunately I couldn't go to RTX but I hope those who did had a wonderful time. Now you need to wait until the next chapter for me to show what Roman means. But no matter what this will keep being a passion project for me. So until next time, stay classy.**

**-TheInnerPeace singing off (Did I just say "stay classy?" God, that's just stupid).**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: …Becomes a Shattered Lie**

Everyone's faces turned to shock. Everyone's including mine, "Oh, did he forget to say that. Well since everything is a shocker then you might want to ask David who else he tried to kill. Well, saying the word try implies that they weren't a success. Well, it's time for me to leave before everyone starts asking questions."

Everything was frozen as what had just been revealed was processed. I was clueless on what to do. 'Should I explain myself to them? Try and cover it up saying it was a lie? No, they won't believe me, not after they piece together what happened. This is all Torchwick's fault. I'm going to…' but before I finished my thought, he was already running out the exploded back into an alleyway. "Where's he going?" I shouted, chasing after him and leaving them staring at my fleeting image.

I was hot on his heels, following him as he weaved left and right through the narrow alleyways. Eventually he was faced with a brick wall, no way to go other than over it. But, before he could climb over the wall I was at the wall's base, "Oh no you don't," I said as I yanked him off the wall by his leg. He gave a startled shout for a brief moment before he was slammed onto the ground.

In between coughs he managed to look at me, "Oh hell, what do you want?"

The dark part of me, the part of me that I tried to hide from Ruby and her team, suddenly took over, "Well, if it's what I want then I want to see you in a box ten feet under with every bone in your worthless body shattered into a fine powder. But first we have catching up to do."

I hoisted him up by his suit and slammed him into the wall, "Hey easy now, don't you remember me at all?"

"All I remember is that you were the one who pushed me over the edge. I remember that you're the scum that tried to have my partner turn on me and kill me. Well, you got halfway through that and now you'll pay for not finishing the job," I said, the rage seeping from me with each word.

"Hey, don't take it personally now. You said you'd get the job done, but I knew you were going soft. I could see it in your actions, methodically moving through the estate, leaving people just so you wouldn't get any more blood on your hands. I had to make a contingency plan just in case of…"

"In case of what, just in case of me actually opening my fucking eyes? Just in case I saw what I had actually been doing for you? I realized you had me doing your dirty work for you," I pulled out my revolver and pointed it at his forehead, "Now you'll see what it's like being on the end of it."

"Perhaps I'll take a rain check," that made my blood boil. But, before I could pull the trigger the wall that he had tried to escape over exploded, pushing me over causing me to miss. "Sorry but today isn't your day," he shouted over the explosion as he ran through the smoke into an armored truck.

Recovering quickly I pulled out my rifle, made sure it had the highest caliber in it that it could hold and fired every single bullet. They all hit the same mark creating a sizable dent into the side of the truck. But it wasn't enough, the vehicle escaped around the corner leaving me furious. I shouted out towards the moving truck, "I'm going to find you and when I do you better pray that I'm in a good mood 'cause I'm going to make sure you feel all the pain I can deliver." Fuming with rage, I stood in the street spouting curses under my breath.

To my surprise I saw Weiss round the corner, which made me give a sigh of relief. Immediately after my whole body tensed as I saw her sprinting at me, rapier in hand. Her normal icy cool eyes were now burning up in rage. 'I thought I was scary,' that's all I could think as I was scared beyond my wits.

"You bastard, you liar!" she shouted as she lunged toward me, her rapier emitting a crimson glow. I leaned backwards, narrowly avoiding the blade but leaving me off-balance. She swiped her leg under mine, knocking me onto my back. Lying towards the sky breathless, her sword glinted in the artificial light of the street lights. That was enough to bring me back to reality as I rolled off to the side. Her blade smashed through the pavement, causing cracks to spread across the road.

I managed to rise to my feet, but I was feeling tired after all the running I had just done, "Weiss, just let me explain."

"No, you have had plenty of time to explain yourself. Now I see why you never did. Because you're nothing but a lying, backstabbing murderer."

'She doesn't care, in her mind I've just taken a sledgehammer to her glass mural of her life. I did it to everyone's, all of them shattered. I need to try and fix this,' "Weiss listen, I've done wrong-" but then I got a swift boot to the chest, knocking me back and leaving me winded. As I tried to regain my breath she charged and took a stab towards me. I tried to dodge left, but the blade scrapped across my stomach, nearly impaling me through the side. I grabbed at my stomach in pain, 'This isn't working.' With that thought in mind I turned my back to Weiss and began to run. However she was swift on my heels as I tried to escape. Blood seeped from the cut and pain seared through my body, but I couldn't stop for anything I just needed a way out. I checked over my shoulder to see if she was still there, but there was nothing other than a white mist, 'Where'd she head off to.' I turned to face back forward to see her land in front of me. All I could do was turn back around and keep running, but I stumbled and fell to the ground. I desperately crawled away as she sauntered towards me. I was the prey and she was the predator.

I stopped crawling and just waited for my impending death. As I laid there I saw my reflection in a puddle of water. My face had blood and dust mashed onto it, dark circles ringed around my eyes and my normally dull eyes were filled with something I had seen before. It was a look of defeat, of total despair. I looked like my dad in his final seconds. The memory of his last moments forced itself forward into my mind, 'Never be like me; never give up.' Never give up, those were his last words. But here I was, bruised and beaten, waiting for the end. I was giving up. 'No, you disgrace. You can't give up! You need to find an out, you always have.'

In the reflection I saw Weiss behind me, "You don't deserve this." Then she pulled back her sword and forced it forward.

"NO!" I shouted in defiance. I grabbed the rapier as she tried to kill me, the blades edges cutting deep in my palms. She kept trying to force it, but it wouldn't move. "Do you think that I meant any of what I've done or am I just a murderer?" Then, with all my strength, I snapped her blade in two. With the broken edge, I smashed the broken blade into her legs knocking them out from under her before she could react to her now broken blade.

I threw the blade to the ground and began to walk off. "You can't run, I'll find you."

Looking over my shoulder at her, I said in a disembodied voice, "I plan on it, because when you do, we'll both be answering each other's questions." Then I ran off back to the only place I knew, back to the place where I would least likely want to be, back to Beacon.

* * *

**Yeah, video games are quite distracting, but here is another chapter. I hope you enjoyed the plot twist I was waiting for that point. Keep doing what you do.**

**-TheInnerPeace signing off (I hope the plot twist was akin to the Spanish Inquisition[Monty Python joke])**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: You can't Escape the Past**

Everything was crumbling apart and there were too many pieces to be able to put it back together. 'So in recap Roman revealed my past, which is just peachy. Because of that Weiss is out for my blood and that isn't very settling. To top it all off, Gohl is still alive, which is quite surprising, and now he also wants me dead. But what about the others, what about Ruby, Blake and Yang? They didn't chase me down which is a good sign, but what do they think of me? So in conclusion I either will face two killers out for my blood or three sane people who probably want to know what I've done that made me run away. Why does everything have to be so complicated? I just need some time to think, once I'm back at Beacon I can grab my equipment and plan my moves. First off I need to get back.'

Dawn's first light was skimming over the horizon as I made it to the airfield. A tall chain-link fence stood between me and the various Bullheads that sat in the hangars. 'Just stow away in one of those and make sure it heads off to Beacon. Simple, but I need to make sure that I make it on the right one.' But in my way stood a fifteen meter tall fence with barbed wire coiling at the top, 'I can't make it over that. So, the only logical way is to go through.' I walked back from the fence and reached into my back pocket and pulled out a thin cylinder that emitted a soft red glow through rectangular indicators on the side, which indicated that it was filled to the brim. "This should do the trick," I thought aloud as I pulled the ring on top of the device. The ring pulled out a pin, which opened up a hole between the two chambers inside the device; one was filled with burn Dust while the other was filled with a catalytic agent, nothing too complex. The two began to mix in the chamber. 'Five… Four… Three,' I threw the cylinder toward the fence and ducked down, facing away from the fence. I slapped my hands over my ears just in time as the makeshift device exploded, making a hole in the fence. Most of the section of fencing was demolished and the remaining portions of it glowed white, 'Not the most subtle way to make an entrance,' I realized, but I had no other way through so I ran through the opening.

* * *

As I moved across the airfield I was constantly checking around corners and over my shoulder, making sure I wasn't being caught. Luckily it appeared there was very little personal assigned for security and no alarm systems set to signal intruders, 'So, I need to find my way onto a Bullhead. Problem is I have no clue which ones are assigned to head for Beacon.'

I began to turn a corner, but noticed two people chatting so I hid around the corner and waited for them to leave. But, curiosity took the best of me, so I listened in on their conversation, "So, is there anything else you need to know, Garrett."

"Yeah, I'm assigned to fly the Beacon transport, but I can't remember the designation number."

"Don't you have your information downloaded on your tablet?"

"No, I was in such a rush this morning that I forgot it."

"Oh, okay I'll cut you some slack since I was the same. Your designation is delta whiskey sierra two nine six. Now when you can make sure you get that info downloaded."

"Okay, thanks man," I heard them walk their separate ways. One of them was heading for me.

Once he turned the corner I pulled him back, grabbed him in a choke-hold and made myself sound as threatening as possible, "Listen, you're going to go board the ship and fly it to Beacon. While you do that I'm going to not put a bullet in your head. Are you clear about what you are supposed to do?"

Amidst sputtering and gasping the man Garrett managed to speak, "Yeah, of course. Just don't kill me."

"I don't plan on it, but don't give me a reason," I let him go and pointed my revolver at him, "Now, get moving. And if you so much as look towards me the first bullet is for you."

"Yeah, I got it just… just don't hurt anyone," he said, his voice wavering. But he did as he was told and started to walk to one of the nearby landing pads.

* * *

As we neared the Bullhead I checked the designation on its side. It read DWS-296, 'Good, I'll be able to get back.' Turning to Garrett I asked, "You're the pilot right?" He nodded in response, "Okay, when do you take off?"

"Uh, few minutes maximum."

"Well, get going on that," he went over to a platform above us and entered the Bullhead, 'Okay, now where should I be when this takes off? There is the possibility that Weiss and the rest could get on the ship. So, the only other place would be, oh dammit, the landing gear housing,' I looked over to my side and saw that the landing gear was already down, "Can something go right for me?" As I finished the sentence I felt wind rush past my face, an ear splitting whine cry through the air and a loud crack fill the air. That meant one thing, gunfire.

I looked to see where the impact was. Behind me, implanted in the ground was a small hole in the ground. With that in mind I hid behind the open landing gear, 'Whoa that was a close one. Who could be trying to kill me now? From the hole it looked like the bullet was a sniper bullet, but who could be trying to kill me?" Suddenly, my tablet on my side gave off a small chime, signalling a call. Confused I opened it and on screen appeared the caller and as soon as it appeared I knew who it was, "Gohl! What are you calling me for?"

"Oh, I just wanted to remember your voice before it would be silenced permanently." As I stared at him through the screen I could only feel the rage building up in me. His features were pretty average except for a large gash across the right of his face still bloody and caused by yours truly.

But, all I felt was anger towards him, "You are lucky to be talking to me after you tried to kill me."

"Only because you abandoned the mission. You said you were up to the job, obviously you were wrong. But now I'm here to collect my dues. You may think you're untouchable, but you aren't and when I get to you, you'll be wishing you killed me." Out of anger I pointed my weapon at the screen and blasted it. The screen exploded outwards, showering the ground with glass.

I turned the corner and began to run to him to try and end his life. However the ships engines ignited, signalling that it was time to leave. "I will find you, but you'll be wishing I had killed you back then as well," I said under my breath as I jumped onto the landing gear. It rose up into its housing and the doors closed under me, leaving me with the knowledge that I was safe, for a while at least.

I realized I wouldn't be able to hide in the area forever as the ships didn't fully land when they dropped off students or supplies at Beacon. I found a small vent covering along one of the small area's walls. I pulled out my weapons and put both on the top corners, "Let's hope this works." Pulling the triggers emitted a loud clang as the bolts were destroyed, leaving a loud ringing noise in my ears. But it also allowed me to pry off the cover more easily. With some effort I managed to open it large enough where I could crawl through the vent somewhat naturally. It was slightly cramped, but it would allow me to be somewhere that I could actually escape from.

After a short amount of crawling I began to hear footsteps going towards me, then away, then back again. The noise continued as if someone were pacing and whoever it was appeared to be quite mad as the pacing was quite loud. Hoping to figure out what was happening I activated my semblance and listened into the conversation.

"Weiss you need to calm down about this," Yang tried to reason.

"Calm down!? How can I be calm when I know we were associated with a murderer?"

"This isn't the solution. Killing him will accomplish nothing."

"I'm with Blake, we don't know why he did what he did. You're just acting on what Torchwick told us. Do you really think he told us everything?"

"I already know all I need to know about him. Listen to yourselves, you two are siding with a killer."

"Why can't you just listen to him and what he has to say? You were able to forgive Blake after all."

"There is a difference between this and back then. David has murdered others on his own accord, he nearly did the same to my father. That I can't just forgive. Besides Yang, Ruby ran off because of knowing what he's done. Can you really forgive him after that?"

"It's not like he did that."

I couldn't listen to the conversation any longer, 'Why must this happen? No matter what someone around me gets hurt because of what I've done. I have done nothing to help others while here. I'm just an outcast, that's what I'll always be. A magnet for danger to come to.' I just laid there, in the vents like a rat, waiting for my chance to run and survive through this.

* * *

**Hope you people on the internet are finding this story interesting. It's something I've wanted to do for quite a while now. It was always something that I just kept in my head. After multiple revisions of how it would pan out I finally started to form the first chapter in my mind one day. Then pencil met paper and I began to write. When I found this website I knew this was where it should be. Within minutes of the first chapter being uploaded two people had already read it and that's what has kept me going, knowing that somewhere an actual person wants to know more about this tale that I am trying to tell. It's truly a wonderful feeling. Now I'm going to keep this up until this story fades into the echoes of the rest. But it will always be there and someone will always remember it.**

**-TheInnerPeace singing off.**


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